Don't You Dare Forget The Sun Karkat
by Roses-of-Envy
Summary: Karkat is abused by his dad, and has to protect his kid cousin Nepeta as well. When his dad goes too far one night, Sollux finds him. Now Karkat is hiding from his dad, will he be able to keep it up? (coverart belongs to the creator)
1. You're a messTangled in Your Confidence

**/Authors Note/  
So It was my last day of school recently, and I was really depressed about it...( I'm going into 8th grade by the way...) and when I'm depressed I write depressing Fanfictions! Ok yeah I'm still really depressed, but I just randomly thought of this song, and then the Karkat MV I saw came to mind...so now it's a sadstuck/humanstuck/SolKat story!**

The song this is based on it **_Don't You Dare Forget the Sun _****by Get Scared...(Listen to it while you read, it'll be epic)  
The Music video, (the Karkat based one...)to find it you look up: Don't You dare Forget the Sun Karkat (It's by darthvaderisback21)**

Seriously, look up the song, not only does it fit perfectly, It's really, really good!

(P.s. the song at the end is called **_Safe and Sound, _****I recommend either the Broadway Aradia version, the Jason Chen cover, or the Tiffany Alvord and Megan Nicole cover!) **

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****

/  
  
"_You're a mess...Tangled in your confidence...You think you haven't sinned..._" I mutter quietly, glancing from the screen of my computer to the bridges on my guitar,, re-adjusting my fingers to match the chords. I strum them a few more times before moving onto the next verse. The room was poorly illuminated, due to the only light source being from the screen.

"_Well you're unstoppable...your walls are impassable..._" I sing these lines a bit louder,trying to keep them in tune with the chords. My voice cracks slightly, making me grimace in shame. I can faintly hear yells coming from the kitchen, which is three rooms away. The angry shouts leak through the walls and permeate my room.

I shake my head slightly and quickly memorize the chords, now attempting to drown out the voices leaking through the plaster.

"_I think you're better off looking alone, if the boys that chase your hips could just find their way home..._" I begin to trail off slightly as my gaze travels around my room. My eyes find an old picture, hanging on my wall by a thin piece of wire. The colors are almost bleached out, but the faint outline of a smile peeked through from the glare on the frame. Ears twitching slightly, I can now detect loud sobs from the kitchen, but there is still yelling, so my assumption is that it's my kid cousin.

_"and at the end of the day, you think to yourself...my body is a product being sold on a shelf..._" I pause again, but now because I heard a soft scream, too high-pitched for it to be anyone but my cousin. I strum a few more chords just to occupy myself as I listen closely. It had fallen silent, and silence was never a good thing in this apartment. I stiffen as the sound of heavy footsteps pounding down the hallway reaches my ears.

I throw my guitar gently onto the bed, silencing the strings before standing up, hearing the footsteps get closer. As I expected, my thin door slammed open, the doorknob forming an even deeper dent in the weak walls. The form of my dad darkened my doorway, his features hard to discriminate from the dark of the hallway, as well as my room. I can see he's holding something in one of his hands, which makes a spark of fear freeze my veins.

He takes one more step into the doorway, and tosses a loudly sobbing Nepeta onto my floor.

"Shut the damn kid up," He sneers, before spinning around and shutting the door once again, making a few bit's of plaster rain down onto my head, the dust sticking in my dark brown hair. I flinch slightly, quickly flipping off the door before crouching down next to my crying cousin.

"Nep? Try to calm down alright, tell me happen?" I ask soothingly, pulling her into my lap and setting my chin on top of her head. The seven year old cat-lover tries stop quiet her sobs by shoving her head into my chest, beginning to wet the front of my hoodie with salty tears. I merely hug her closer, not wanting my dad to come back and yell some more, although according to the quiet outside my room, he's most likely lying in wait.

"H-he w-was yelling-g a-a-at m-mommy again," she stutters, her voice muffled in the grey fabric of my hoodie. I frown, already deducing that fact from the loud shouts from earlier. She calls her aunt: Mom, since hers died in an accident a few years back.

"But CatNep, why are _you _crying?" I ask, gently threading my fingers through her hair. I take note that she isn't wearing her cat hat, and that her hair is ridiculously tangled. I would get up and grab my comb, but the girl has a death grip on my neck.

"..."

"Nepeta..." I say, using her full name to let her know I'm serious.

She pulls back from my chest, leaning all the way back so I could see her face. My breath hitched and anger began smoldering deep in my chest. Her cheek was an angry red color, and I could see the faint outline of finger marks.

I took her shoulders and pushed her away, standing up.

"I'll be back Nepeta, stay here alright," I murmur, kissing the top of her head.

I walk out of my room, quiet as a mouse. The door makes a soft click, which makes me flinch for a Milli-second before springing into action once again. My socked feet make little sound on the carpeted hall as I hurry down it to the kitchen area. I pass my parents bedroom, where the door was slightly open and the flicker of TV distracted me. I could hear mutters, meaning that my mom was in there talking to herself.

The kitchen is dark, and that's the first hint that something was off. The light was always on. But I tried to brush it off and hurried over to the fridge. I opened up the freezer door, not ven flinching at the blast of air. Reaching inside, I had almost grabbed the ice pack when the door was slammed shut on my arm.

I didn't dare make a sound, so I merely stiffened and grimaced, letting my hand find the ice pack. I turn my head to see Silas smirking at me. My face contorts into a mocking sneer as well, which clearly angers him.

"Well _punk,_ what are you _doing?" _he hisses, putting more weight against the door. Another pained grimace crosses my features, and he revels at that.

"Fuck off," I mutter, trying to put enough weight against the door to cancel his out, but my small frame stood no chance against his larger one.

Apparently that was the wrong answer.

He first jumped back, releasing me and causing me to stumble. Right as I began to fall, he caught my shirt and jacket collar. Successfully yanking me up, he drew back his arm and swiftly punched the left side of my face, right under my eye. Against my will, a short gasp escaped my lips, and my hand flew up to my face on instinct. A short bark of a laugh escaped my dad's lips, and I turn to glare at him again.

The I remeber the cool ice pack clutched in my hand, Nepeta takes priority. I growl lowly, but spin around, avoiding the hand about to land on my shoulder. I'm shocked he doesn't stop me, but then that must mean he's got more in store for me. Brushing away these thoughts, I rush back down the hallway, ignoring my mother once again, and retreating into my room.

Nepeta was right where I left her, but fresh tears were running down her cheeks. A sob escapes her once more as I close the door fully. Sitting down, I allow her to crawl back into my lap. I hand her the ice pack, letting her press it against the spot on her cheek. She barely protests when I gently start to sway us, it seems to calm her down.

"Karkitty?' she asks softly.

I make a small humming noise in response. She twists er head slightly, trying to look up at me.

"Will you, um, sing for me?" she asks pleadingly. A sad smile alights my face, my eyes tearing up slightly. Her voice wa so sad and lost, but at made me think of a song, one i hadn't sang in a long time.

_I remember tears streaming down your face when I said 'I'd never let you go'  
When all those shadows almost killed your light  
I remember you said 'don't leave me here alone'  
But all that's said and gone and passed  
Tonight  
Just close your eyes  
The sun is going down  
You'll be alright  
No one can hurt you now  
Come morning light  
You and I will be  
Safe ~  
and  
Sound~_

I let my voice trail off, feeling Nepeta begin to lean against me more, her breath deepening and slowing.

"mrm..." she mumbles. I smile again, but take that as a sign to continue singing. Her grip is getting a little slack, so I help keep the ice pack against her skin.

_Don't you dare look out your window _  
_Darling everything's on fire  
The war outside our door keeps raging on  
Hold on to this lullaby  
Even when the music  
Is Gone  
Gone~'_

Just close your eyes  
The sun is going down  
You'll be alright  
No one can hurt you now  
Come morning light  
You and I will be  
Safe ~  
and  
Sound~

I trail off again, noticing that she is now completely limp, almost curled up in my lap. The only thing keeping the ice pack on her cheek was my hand, which was numb from the cool. Her breathing is completely even though, and the tears have stopped. I carefully pick her up, cradling her gently in my arms. On instinct, she leans into my warmth, which I don't mind. She shouldn't have to go through such rough things.

I carry her back to her room, avoiding my mom and dad, who were in their room, silently brooding. Nepeta's room was as dark as mine was, but at least her walls had some color. Crudely drawn cats doing various cat things decorated the walls, as well as pictures. Pictures of her and her mom, and her brother.

I twist around, looking away from the photo's and walk toward her bed. I lay her down, slowly drawing a blanket up to her neck. She stirs, but only to grab at a stuffed cat, hugging it close to her chest.

I backhand a tear, and spin around, walking out once again.

The trek to my room was uneventful, and the moment I close my door, I practically tackle my bed, taking care not to land on my guitar. My pillow muffles my scream, of both pain and sadness.

The arm that got slammed in the fridge was my dominant arm, my right one. A large bruise was forming along my forearm, it was about as big as my hand. I couldn't inspect the punch I got to the cheek, but I could feel it was already a dark color. The nerve endings were giving me hell for it as well.

I groan and sit up, looking over at my laptop. I bookmark the page then close out. Looking at the screen, it's already 3am. My alarm is already set for five, but I have a feeling I won't get much sleep.

School was starting tomorrow after all.

**\**

\Authors Note\  
So here's the first chapter!  
I hope you guys enjoyed/got interested!

I will be accepting pairings (except this is a SolKat fanfic, so no other Xp)  
Nepeta is 7 years old as well...just remember that.

I might update the next chapter soon, depending on my inspiration...

But feedback is always appreciated!

Disclaimer~ I don't own anything in this story besides the plot~


	2. YouThinkYouHaven'tSinnedWellYo u're

**\Authors Note\  
Aiyah! Thanks for all the follows and favorites! (Professor CatEars, Stormstars110, gamernixen, sayaingirl21) You guys are awesome and I'm glad you liked it :D**

And thanks to Guest reviewer! I like your enthusiasm XD

So this is the second chapter, (derp, what else would it be XP) But you'll begin to get more insight on Karkat's life!-ish...well this chapter is going to be a bit long XD

Um, I updated earlier than I thought XP BUT DON'T GET USED TO IT

Hope you enjoy and I'll see you at the bottom of the page!

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I never actually went to sleep. It took me about thirty minutes of tossing and turning before I gave up and began watching a romcom. The gentle lights and soft volume lulled me into a sort of daze, and I almost began dozing off. But of course, in that moment my alarm went off. The beeping was insufferable and the obnoxious noise hurt my ears.

With a loud groan, I shut it off a blearily look at my clock.

Whoop-dee-fucking-doo, it was seven a.m., and that meant the start of not only a new day, but also a new school year. I had all of my materials ready at least, mostly just consisting of an old backpack and foraged supplies. I glance down at my self and realize I never changed out of my clothes from yesterday, nor did I get a shower. Great, more things to worry about.

I disregard the shower, it would be too much of a pain, but I do change out of my hoodie, silently noting that the front was slightly stiff from tears. I painfully withdraw my right arm from the sleeve, wincing when my bruise got hit. Even in the low light I could see it was a dark and angry purple. Looks like it'll be a long sleeved day. Of course, it was a cool autumn day, so I would've worn a jacket in the first place.

Now shirtless, I walk over to my dresser and search through my drawers. At least all of my color choices were darker schemes, I didn't particularly care about fashion. In the end I decide on a rather tight grey and black striped long sleeved. Which was hell to pull on, but the sleeves hung past my fingertips. I randomly chose a pair of pants, all of them looked the same anyway.

That being said, I now had to search for shoes. It was too dark to discern the different shapes in my closet, so I snorted in defiance and walked back over to my bed, where my laptop was still playing the credits to the romcom. I used the light to find some ratty tennis shoes. Like I said, I don't give a shit about fashion. The time was now seven twenty-one, wow that took a bit too long for my taste.

I heard shuffling outside my room, then footsteps heading away. I assumed that my mom was up, but would she bother to wake me or Nepeta up? Of course not.

I exit my bedroom, after plugging my laptop to the charger, and make my way to Nepeta's room. When I open the door, I'm greeted with a small glomp. The cat-girl had been waiting for me, and she was already dressed and ready for school. I was glad that she could at least dress herself, I wouldn't want to deal with that.

"Morning Karkitty!" She purrs, giggling slightly. Her cat hat rubbed against my thin shirt, shedding a bit of blue fluff.

"Morning Catnep, got your bag ready?" I reply, swinging her up to rest on my hip. She wrapped her arms around my neck and nodded with a grin, showing off abnormally sharp canines.

"Yes! It is over there," She replies, pointing. I find the bright pink bag easily, and stride over to pick it up.

"And your face?" I ask, realizing that she had handed the ice pack back to me when I had been glomped.

She turns her head up so I can get a better look at her, and I nod in approval. There was no sign that she had even been hit. However, I see her gaze go to my cheek, and her eyes widen slightly.

"Karkitty...What about yours?" She whispers softly, brushing her fingers across my cheekbone. I remember that I had gotten punched, and a wince crossed my features as the tender skin throbs.

"It's fine, I'll be alright," I say quickly, setting her back down onto the floor and grabbing her hand.

"Let's get some breakfast alright!" I say as brightly as I could, smiling wide as I could without hurting my cheek any more.

She nods wordlessly and follows behind me, slinging her bag over her shoulder. I walk into the hallway, softly shutting her door. The sharp aroma of coffee permeates my nostrils as we continue down the hall and the smell makes my stomach turn. I've never particularly enjoyed coffee, it never helped keep me awake,or put me to sleep. The smell and taste of it disturbed me.

My mom is sitting at the table, sipping a espresso and reading the paper. I see her eyes flick up to me before she wearily turns the page, the loud crackle of the parchment disturbing the silence.

"Morning mommy!" Nepeta says with a grin, detaching herself from me to give my mom a kiss on the cheek. I can tell that she is angered by Nepeta's blatant use of the word mom, but she simply ignores the affections and returns to moping and reading.

I turn away without greeting, first opening the freezer to return the ice pack before opening the fridge and grabbing the milk carton. Not only is it low, but the expiration date is getting close as well.

"We'll need more milk soon," I mutter, setting it on the counter. Nepeta had grabbed two spoons, and a big bowl for me. She was holding the smaller bowl, eagerly waiting for me to grab the cereal. I look at our options: Cheerios and...corn flakes. I grimace again, and grab the Cheerios, the perfect way to start a Monday. The box is pitifully light, so I end up pouring the last of it for Nep, leaving the stale cornflakes for me.

While we're eating, I can feel my moms gaze on us, which makes me eat all the faster to get away from her. I can tell she keeps opening her mouth to say something, then shutting it again. When I finish, getting up to put the dishes in the sink, she finally gets the courage to speak apparently.

"Do you...want me to drive you to school?" She rasps, her voice cracking from disuse.

I stiffen at the sound, setting the dishes down with a loud clank.

"No, we'll walk," I say curtly, keeping my back to her.

"But, it's cold-"She begins.

"We'll manage," I snarl, spinning back around to glare at her. I can see the hurt in her eyes, but I frankly don't care.

"Come on Nep, it's time to leave," I mutter, taking her bowl and silverware to place alongside mine. She barely protests as I yank her up and pull her to my room. I only do this so that I can hide my laptop, and grab my own backpack. As an afterthought, I grab my jacket and one for her as well.

I brush past my mom, who is staring blankly at the wall, coffee mug in hand.

"Have a good day," She murmurs, earning a snort from me.

\

Nepeta is silent as we make our way down five flights of stairs, avoiding other tenants as they rush to various places. I spot a few other kids, but all of them are being led by parents, sending a pang of guilt through my chest.

The air bites us the moment we step outside, eating through my thick coat and making Nep shiver. It was late August, but the cool air from the north always came early. I was glad had grabbed a for the two of us, even if the dark color didn't look right on Nepeta. I was glad it was only a few blocks to the elementary school, and only a few more to the high school.

Buses blew past us, along with parents driving their kids, and there were other walkers ahead and behind us. The first day of school seemed to draw everyone out of their holes.

All to quickly, the elementary school loomed in front of us. I took pity on my kid cousin, who was leaning into me and cowering, and walked her inside. I didn't care that I was going to be late, Nepeta had a death grip on my hand.

There were many other parents consoling children, but I was the only teenager, for which I was sort of nervous about. In only a few seconds, an overly perky teacher rushed over to us.

"Hi there! Who are you?" She asked with a large, white grin. Nepeta clutched my hand tighter (if that was even possible) and cowered behind my leg.

I sighed, fond smile on my face, "This is Nepeta, Nepeta Leijon."

The teachers' smile grew larger, it was starting to freak me out a bit.

"Well, isn't that a coincidence! I'm your teacher! I'm Mrs. Aradia, nice to meet you Nepeta and..." she holds out her hand to me, stuttering a bit.

"Karkat, I'm her cousin," I say, shaking her hand.

"Well Karkat! I can take her off your hands, seems like you need to head off to the high school," She says with a wink, gently pulling Nepeta away from me. I curse lowly and nod.

"I'll pick you up, CatNep, wait for me at the front ok," I say, brushing back her bangs and pull the Cat-hat down a bit more.

With a nod I turned away and began heading out the door, glad to leave the crying kids behind.

But that just made me dread the next six hours even more.

The front of the high school was teeming with teenagers, already forming various groups. I could see the preps, the geeks, the goths, the smokers, but the list was practically endless. And of course, I had no idea where to fit again. With a dejected sigh, I began walking toward the front doors. Already I was attracting stares, which I did my best to ignore.

I heard a few giggles and whispers, which made me grit my teeth and walk faster. My pocket buzzed as I got a text message, and I remembered that I had my earbuds in my pocket. A small sigh of relief left me as I popped them in and began blasting Dance with the Dead. It successfully drowned out everything, and my gaze reverted to the text message I had received.

**To: Karkat  
From: Gamzee**

hEy mOtHeRfUcKiNg BeSt fRiEnD  
oUr LoCkErS aRe RiGhT nExT tO EaCh OtHeRs  
HoNk :O)

Oh fuck, the high, psycho clown. That meant he would have to deal with him for a whole, fucking, year. The song ended, letting the the next track play. There were even more students inside the school, many of them just hanging out around their lockers. I was still attracting stares, but I wasn't as affected. I received my locker number at the school registration, so I looked at it, 413...that was at the end of the hallway.

I could already see the tall clown slouching over and spinning his combination lock, concentration obvious on his face. I let my face contort my default scowl, already pissed off at nothing. I glance at the combination...what the actual hell? 6-3-7 these are some strange numbers.

I still continued blasting Get Scared, ignoring everything as long as I could, which was only a few seconds according to the clown slinging his arm around my shoulders.

"What the hell do you want Juggalo?" I growl, shoving him off and trying to tackle the combination yet again. When the lock clicks I yank it open, and shove my backpack into it. I continued to ignore Gamzee, until he pulled out one of my ear-buds.

"Motherfuckin' best friend, have you heard a fuckin' word I've said?" He drawls, twirling the ear-bud around his nimble fingers. I snarl at him, yanking the other ear-bud out.

"No, and I truly don't give a shit," I reply, slamming shut my locker and pulling away from him.

"Oh don't motherfuckin be like that Karbro, just get you chill on," he says, hugging me closer.

"Fuck you, I'm going to class," I mutter, pulling away sharply and practically running away. As if we weren't getting enough stares before. But of course he was able to easily keep up with his long legs. I noticed that he had gotten taller over the summer, he was quite literally towering over me now, my head coming to just below his collarbone.

"Motherfucker, I was askin what was up with your face," He says, a hint of concern in his voice.

"...shit," I say lowly, "Nothing," I reply.

"That ain't nothin'," He retorts, brushing his hand over the face and causing me to flinch.

"Fuck off ok, I don't wanna talk about it," I snarl, walking into the classroom.

And here's to the start of a new year,

Fuck my life.

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**/Authors Note/**

Well, I kind of feel like I failed with this chapter, but here it is!

Inspiration comes in weird ways...

ENTER GAMZEE MAKARA

Yup

Next chapter will be about class...and the entrance of new characters ;) ;) ;)

I have no idea when I'll update, to be honest I'm shocked I updated so early!

So...feedback would be appreciated (as always) and I'll see you next chapter!

Disclaimer~I own nothing in the story besides the plot~  



	3. Unstoppable, Your Walls are Impassable

**\Authors note\  
Oh my gog you guys are so awesome! Thanks to: deltaepsilon004, Tsumi Otonashi, KuruKecleon , KLonely716, and InsomniacDragon, I thank you for the follows/favorites!**

And Thanks for the reviewers (Captainforkz, InvisibleHeroine, KLonely716, and Guest)

To Guest: I'm glad you like it! I hope you'll continue to enjoy it as well XD

This story will probably get more of my time now because it's more popular, (unless you want me to update a certain one XP ) I'll probably end up setting up a poll...that's what I get for working on too many stories at once \(-.-")\

I'm still accepting pairings! Although, I'm not sure what the age of some of the characters will be, as you can tell, Aradia is a teacher, while Nepeta is a 2nd grader...and Nepeta will need some friends...so age'll be the main issues but I will CONSIDER any pairings you request! (the list is at the bottom of the page)

I'll figure it out as I go!

(I'm honestly purely winging this story)

So I'll see you at the bottom of the page!

* * *

****Gamzee continued to pester me until the warning bell rang, and other students began to stream into the classroom. I had already grabbed a seat in the back , next to the window. But of course, the damn juggalo had sat right in front of me, and he continually tried to start a conversation with me, all of which I ignored. My chin had found it's way to my hand, and my gaze traveled out to the window.

The classroom had a perfect view of the parking lot, and the park beyond. I could still see a few stragglers sprinting into the school, looking like scurrying squirrels from the height. I sighed and was tempted to plug up again, but of course final bell rang at that moment, and I was forced to put my phone away. The teacher stalked in, a rather stern lady with white blonde hair. I assumed she was new because I'd never seen her before in the school.

"Hello everyone, I'm your new Geometry 1 teacher, Mrs. Lalonde," She says primly, turning to scrawl her signature across the board. I caught a glimpse of a stylish ring on her finger, making me curious to who her husband was, she seemed like a...high maintenance type. She turned around and adopted a snarky smile.

"So, I expect no shit from any of you, and I hope we'll have a good year," She says pleasantly. A shock ran through the room at her blatant cuss, but it quieted down quickly.

"I'll be calling roll now, just raise you hand and yell here," She says, picking a clipboard up from her desk. She then proceeded to call out names that I didn't really care about, especially since I was at the bottom of the list. A small groan escaped me and I laid my head down on my desk, the all-nighter beginning to catch up to me.

The names were all familiar, until Mrs. Lalonde got to to the C's.

"Sollux Captor?"

For a few seconds everyone was glancing around, trying to figure out who Sollux was, because no one had heard of him. In this school district, everyone knew everyone else until they graduated, and newbies weren't exactly welcomed. Mrs. Lalonde frowned and began to mark something on her clipboard, then the door was slammed open. For one thing, the door was supposedly locked, and for another thing, that must've been Sollux because he sure didn't look familiar.

A tall lanky boy stood panting in the doorway, keeping the door propped open with a slender hand. He still had his shoulder bag with him, and he was flushed slightly from running all the way to the classroom.

"Here," He said breathlessly, taking a few steps in and shutting the door behind him. A shock ran through me when I realize I had seen him running from the parking lot, well now I feel like an extreme creeper. Mrs. Lalonde raises a thinly plucked eyebrow, but scribbles out the mark she made and makes another one.

"Go ahead and take that seat in the back," She says, pointing with her pen...at _me_. I growl lowly and turn to the side, seeing that there was an empty seat right next to me. The tall kid sighs thankfully and awkwardly makes his way to the back of the room. Now I can't tell if his blush is from being overexerted or because of the giggles and whispers being directed at him.

He now captures my attention, and the drone of the teachers' voice fades as I stare at him. The first thing I really notice, is how freakishly tall he is. I mean, I know we're sophomores (10th graders) and that basically everyone has had their growth spurts, but this kid was borderline as tall as Gamzee. Meaning, he was about 5'9", which considering I'm a measly 5'4", is quite tall to my standards.

He's also wearing weird shades, which is odd how I hadn't noticed them before. One lens was blue while the other was red, jeez, how weird can you get?

Sollux was now slouching ridiculously in his desk, and digging through his backpack, eventually pulling out a notebook and a pen. I became curious, the notebook was very worn, and had alot of scribbles on it. Seems like this kid used it often. As if answering my thoughts, he opened to the back, and scratched down a few more things, before closing it and returning his gaze to the front of the room.

"-Vantas,"

"Here," I grumble, mostly on instinct, because I was honestly so out of focus I had barely heard her call my name. It seemed that I was the last one on the roster (someone give me a prize!)Because she set her clipboard down.

She brushes her hands together, like she was getting rid of dirt, then picks up a stack of papers.

"These are 'guidelines' for the classroom, and believe me when I tell you, I'm only doing this because it's required by the principal. I don't care if you take them home and burn them, but you need to have them for the first day," She says, passing them out to each row to pass back. Then she goes to sit on the edge of her desk, crossing her legs. She was wearing a practical pair of business pants, and some weird Tux/Vest combo.

When the paper was handed to me, I snorted and set it back down onto my desk after skimming it. Most of the time teachers read these things aloud, but apparently Mrs. Lalonde was content with watching us read them. After a few minutes, everyone gave up on reading and turned expectantly back to her.

"I haven't got anything planned for today, talk amongst yourselves," She says with a dismal wave of her hand.

Well, interesting. Of course, I didn't want to talk to anyone, and my arm was starting to hurt again, so I pulled out my phone and plugged up, beginning a playlist. I saw Gamzee turn back around, but then frowned (Although it was hard to tell that he did with all of the clown makeup he had on) and instead turned all the way around to talk to Sollux. I didn't really care of course, I laid my head down and began scrolling through all the songs I owned.

There was about half an hour left to class, and i considered that prime music listening time.

Ah,Theory of a Dead Man, totally perfect.

That was the main portion of first period for me, and I would rather not completely bore you with the song I listened to.

When the bell rings, everyone predictably sprints out of the classroom. I just wait till everyone's gone before ambling out, pulling out my schedule to see my next class. I'm so focused on trying to decipher the gibberish that I don't notice the new kid behind me struggling with his own schedule.

"Th'it goddamnit," Sollux mutters. I hear this, and slightly startled, turn to see him balancing his notebook and backpack along with some weird mix of papers. I just stare as he almost drops them. Then everything seems to magically sort themselves out and he sighs and looks down at his own schedule again. A small frown goes over his face though, and he looks up, meeting stares with me.

I make a pathetic "eep" noise, before spinning on my heel and practically running down the hallway. The guy freaked the hell out of me, not to mention pissed me off for reasons I couldn't explain. I was glad that I had become an expert crowd weaver in the short span of my life, because I lost him rather quickly.I glance down at my schedule again, brushing past a pack of girls giggling loudly.

**Period I-Geometry I**

Period II-Biology

Biology huh, why do I even bother with these pointless classes? It's not like I'll ever need them in life...I quickly banish those sort of thoughts, I wouldn't want to get to far into my own head, that could end badly.

The warning bell rang, making me curse and book it to the third floor, just barely sliding into the classroom before final bell rang. At least I wasn't the only (almost) late one, at least three others slid in after me.

Of course we had those stupid two seating tables, but no one was actually sitting, the teacher was in the center of the room, and was making everyone stand on the outskirts. He barely glanced up from his stare-down with the back wall.

I glanced up at the board to see which teacher it was this year, _**Mr. Egbert **_, was scrawled in rather sloppy blue dry-erase marker. Oh, yeah, this was a cool teacher, thank gog. After about a minute more, he breaks out of his trance and smiles widely, spinning around to look at all of us.

"Hiya everyone! I'm "Mr. Egbert" but I'd honestly prefer it if you just called me John, or even "ectobiologist extraordinaire" if you want!" He says with a large fanboy-like grin. Great, another ridiculously happy teacher, what a joy. He keeps smiling ridiculously at us, until he seems to remember something, snapping his fingers and spinning around.

"Alright, I'm going to place you in partners, which will change each quarter, and that's how I'll call roll as well!" He says quickly. Did this guy have to much coffee or something?He began reading off names, running his finger down the page as he went.

"Karkat? Interesting! Beep Beep Meow!" He says with a laugh, which pulls me out of my thoughts once again. I scowl at him, what a stupid pun. He just laughs at my pissed off expression and points to a table...where the fuckass is also sitting. I'm going to have to start paying more attention or else I'm going to get lost.

Captor is focusing intently on his notebook and doesn't even notice my approach. He is frowning and mouthing something, way to peg yourself a weirdo new guy.

I wordlessly sit down on the high stool, letting my legs dangle as I stare at the pen in my hand. My ADD seems to kick in as my thoughts go to how cold the table is and how high the chairs as well as the tables are.

The cool porcelain seeps through my jacket and hits the skin on my arm, making chill bumps rise on my skin. I shiver, but that motion makes my arm spasm slightly, causing the bruised part of it to smack the table.

I hiss lowly, and that seems to draw the attention of the dumbass sitting next to me, because his head jerks up and he turns toward me, still frowning.

"Dude, you ok?" he asks, reality seeming to smack him in the face.

"Yes I'm fine now get you ass back into reality," I hiss back, turning toward the front, where John was watching all of us converse. This guy seemed creepier now from when he taught last year.

"Ok guys! I kinda forgot the guidelines,so you guys can do nothing for the day I guess...heheheheheh..." he chuckles awkwardly then quickly escapes to behind his desk, where I see him pull out a phone and begin frantically texting someone. I snort and pull out my phone again, then re-think my decision when I see the battery getting low. A grimace crosses my feature before I pocket the device.

"Th'o um what are we doing?"

I turned, slightly shell-shocked, to look at Sollux. He was slouched over the table, head laid down on his arms. But he was looking at e from the corner of his eyes.

"Wait...what? Nothing, we're doing fucking nothing and nothing is probably all we'll fucking do in any of our fucking classes," I snarl quickly, turning away agin.

"Ok dude, don't need to get defen'th'ive," He says, turning to the front with a small smirk. I can feel my eye twitching in annoyance, that damn lisp.

If this asshole was in all of my classes I was going to murder someone.

* * *

**/authors Note/**

So I know this is a really sucky place to end, but I don't want to write the next few classes next, I will in the next chapter though! (plus I just want to update XD)

So I've made a list of what the kids and stuff are: (base any shipping desires on this)

Aradia-teacher  
Tavros-student  
Sollux-student  
Nepeta-2nd grader/cousin  
Kanaya-teacher  
Terezi-2nd grader  
Equius-brother to Nepeta  
Gamzee-student  
Eridan-2nd grader  
Feferi-2nd grader  
Roxy-Student (don't ask why)

John-biology teacher  
Rose-geometry teacher  
Dave-gym teacher  
Jade-arts  
Jane-Home Ec teacher  
Jake-English teacher (Okk yes, I had to)  
Dirk-World history

Ok I did think these up around 1;30 am, but they seem perfectly logical to me :D

(Yeah, I'm kinda sleep-deprived)

I think the characters are a little...out of character, is it bad?

But feedback is always appreciated! Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter!

Disclaimer~I own nothing in this story besides the plot!~


	4. IThinkTYou'reBetterOffLookingA loneIfThe

**/Authors Note/  
Ohmyglobyouguysaresoabsolutelyawesome!**

So many people have begun following! I love you guys! (in a non-creeper way...)  
So yeah! Thanks to: Leopardtail, twijazluver, Elusive Panther, Captainforkz, Lejionpounce21, MarbleTabby, solluxcaptor45, Scetchbook123, NepetaTheShippingQueen, Obsessivefangirl03, Wolfen Artist of Hetalia, InuNeko245, 333stepha, ForeverWillEnd, . , **for favoriting, following, reviewing, or whatever you did, that makes me really happy :D (thanks to others as well :D ) ( I'm sure more people'll follow as I post this, so don't gget offended if I don't have your pen name up XP)**

To Guest: I'm glad you like my representation of him :D I keep thinking I'm making him too quiet and...happy? Can't really think of the word, but I'm glad you think he's cute :D

I JUST REALIZED I DIDN'T SAY WHAT VRISKA WAS GOING TO BE! (only because of a nice reviewer...) She is going to be a TEACHER at NEPETA'S school!

I'm glad you guys don't see them as OOC, I got a little worried for a second O.-"

So...um enjoy and I'll see you at the bottom of the page!

* * *

****The Biology class passed just as uneventfully, with Sollux and I sitting in an awkward silence the whole time. I began counting down the minutes just to pass the time, because there didn't seem to be much else I could do. Sollux, the bastard, had his notebook out, and was scribbling some more. When I glanced over, he had drawn a very nice sketch of a kid sitting at a computer screen, but there were alot of notes around it that didn't seem to relate to the drawing at all.

He didn't notice my glances at least, and from what I could gather, he was some sort of hacker and the scribbles were a bunch of different codes. I was proud of myself for recognizing them actually, I only dabble in the computer programming section, because I never really had time for it.

My mind began to wander in our awkward silence, the voices of other students chatting drowning out many of the smaller thoughts. I saw Egbert was now doing something on his computer, a small smile on his face. He had earbuds in, almost like he was mocking me for my lack of musical distraction.

Luckily, before I got to annoyed, the bell rang and I was able to book it out of there. I shoved past Sollux, and practically sprint into the hallway, ignoring the yells and protests. I had lunch after...Gym. For fucks sake, can I get a break?

With an angry sigh, I head to my locker, I had to grab my gym clothes. The Juggalo wasn't there at least, so I was able to grab my things in peace and head to the gymnasium on the first floor. The stairwells were more difficult to navigate, due to the many clueless freshman rushing around, trying to find their classes. None tried to approach me, which I should be thankful for, I guess.

By the time I got to the gym, warning bell hadn't rang yet, so I went ahead and headed to the locker rooms, since I still had time to change. There were already alot of guys in the room, and my nose wrinkled a the smell. You could tell they didn't clean over the summer, because the stale body odor still hung in the air. Plus the smell of fresh BO and a horrible mix of colognes.

I quickly joined the less athletic kids that had claimed lockers at the back, and put my lock on a locker. I suddenly remember the bruise on my arm, the one on my face was ok, but I didn't about it when I grabbed clothes in the morning. After growling a few curses, I just changed into gym shorts, keeping the long-sleeved shirt on. I was already sweating at the thought of the horrendous workout we were probably going to do.

Warning bell rang, and everyone quickly exited, the slam of lockers echoing cruelly in the concrete room.

The coach was standing there waiting, although I couldn't tell exactly if he was waiting because he had on reflective black shades that didn't let us see his eyes. But his relaxed posture, crossed arms and displaced weight, indicated he was the type to not give a shit if you were late or not.

At least he didn't seem to be freakishly muscle-y like last years coach. He had more of a thin frame, under his baggy white t-shirt and white jeans. He was actually really young, probably no older that 25. I found that odd, why would someone so young get a crap-job like that?

When final bell rang, and the last stragglers gathered in the center, he finally spoke up.

"Alright, so I'm your gym coach for this year, you guys should just call me Dave, 'cause I hate formalities," he says. His voice silenced everyone instantly, especially the girls. I was kind of shocked by his voice, because for one, he had a Texan accent. Although, from his tan and naturally bleach-blonde hair, I kind of assumed he was from down south. But it also held this smooth quality. If I was asked to label it, I would say cool. And asshole.

"So listen, I don't want to be the bastard that makes you run ten miles and shit, but it's required for you to do some weird workout for the first week of school," He looks down at his hand, and I can now see that he's holding a phone.

"Um, fifteen minutes of running/walking, I don't care which, oh gog, OK they say you have to do 25 push ups and 25 sit-ups, and I hated when my Bro made me do workouts like this, so all you guys are going to do for today is run, then I'll figure something out," He says, making a scowl before returning to expressionless.

"Ok, so roll call, just say here or something," he says, then quickly begins listing names. I was thankful to hear that neither Captor nor Makara were in the class with me, which made me relax slightly. Although one of Gamzee's friends, Tavros, was, which I didn't mind because me and him didn't talk much.

He then walked over to some piece of technology in the center of the gym. His old sneakers barely made a noise on the polished wood, which I found strange because the wood literally made everyone's shoes squeak.

He plugged his phone into the weird thing, and seemed to select a playlist.

"You're going to run for five minutes, which will end when the song ends, then I'll let you walk for about seven minutes, which will be another song. You'll do that until I figure out something else we can do," he says, motioning to the phone, then pointing to the perimeter of the gym. He was met with a few grumbles, but mostly there were sounds of agreement.

"Go ahead and get moving," he says tapping the screen of his phone. Everyone began moving, some more reluctant than others. When the song began playing, I was sort of shocked, because this sounded like something you would play at a club, not in school. I won't deny that it was good though, whoever created this was an expert DJ, definitely.

At least there was a nice beat to it, it was something you could easily run to , and everyone seemed to think the same thing because we all began to run at the same pace. The five minutes passed quickly, and we were able to walk for the next seven.

I was shocked that this class passed so quickly, but I was thankful when he dismissed us to the locker rooms ten minutes early. He never thought of anything, so he just let us go. I changed quickly, then retreated back to the eery silence of the gym. Dave was standing there, bobbing his head to another mix he was playing. He didn't even turn his head to me, so I assumed that he was pretty into it.

The silence didn't last long though, because others quickly escaped the locker rooms and filled the large room. Everything began to echo loudly as voices rose to hear each other. I decided to retreat to a quiet corner, and just watch every one else.

That plan actually worked for a little, but then Tavros came over to join me. I didn't mind, it seemed like he didn't want to be standing alone, which is perfectly understandable. He slouched back into the bleachers that I was leaning against. He nodded at me, so I nodded back, both of us were content with silence.

But would peace ever last? Of course not.

Apparently us two loners caught the attention of the big-headed jocks, who made their way over to us once their small minds processed the fact that we were "fresh meat".

I noticed their approach and stiffened, glancing at the clock. But luck wasn't with us, we still had five minutes. Tavros continued to be in his own world, staring up at the ceiling and swinging his legs.

"Vantas, Nitram," a mocking voice said, it's annoying high-pitch making me scowl.

"What the hell do you want Josh," I growl, barely turning. ((AAND enter OC cause I couldn't think of a Homestuck character))

"Oh? nothing, just wondering who beat you up," He says with a smirk.

_Gogdamn him._

"It was no one, no one you'd know," I say, turning to glare at him. He sneers at me, mocking my helplessness. His cohorts sneer as well, perfect copies of their damn leader.

"Of course, perfect excuse, tell me, how'd they get you so bad?"

"What's you aim in this? What will be the ending result?" I ask furiously, knowing he's trying to get under my skin, and succeeding.

"Aim? What Aim-" he begins to say, but I'm saved by the bell.

I scowl at him once more and shove past him, feeling my shoulder blade hit his arm, really hard. I can hear Tavros following close behind, hopefully making it past those guys.

I make my way to the cafeteria, where many others are beginning to gather, in time for their lunch period. The doors are already open, and I assume that this year it's first come first served because many people have already received their lunched and are sitting down and chatting.

I curse lowly when I remember that I don't have lunch money, I had given it all to Nepeta so she could eat. With a frustrated sigh, I turn back around, and run into none other than Sollux. He barely rocks on his heels, but I end up bouncing back on my feet and almost fall. I curse some more, pressing the heel of my hand against the bruise on my cheek.

"Aw th'it th'orry, " I hear him say, then I look up to see him staring at me.

"Fuck you," I mutter, then brush past him, or at least I tried. Before I could get two steps away, he grabbed my right arm. I wanted to scream with how much it hurt, but I toned it down to a pained yelp, made him release my arm quickly. when I turned, I saw him frowning worriedly at me.

"Um...where are you going? Isn't this your lunch period too?" He asks, after a few moments of self debate.

"...Not hungry."

He frowns even more, but I ignore it and begin walking again, holding my right arm limply to my side. I was glad when he didn't pursue me, and in only a minute the din of voices was quiet, and the sounds of my footsteps were almost foreign to my ears. I made my way to the computer lab, which was inside the library. I'm glad the librarians don't question you, they just nod and let you continue on.

There were three freshmen's, as well as a senior at the computers as well, but they didn't acknowledge me, so I sat down at a secluded computer in the back. I plugged in my earbuds, and opened up Youtube, might as well try to figure out the chords if I have nothing better to do.

I found a pen on the floor, as well as a piece of notebook paper, so I used that to jot down the chords I needed. I found this process a bit more difficult without my guitar to practice with, but nonetheless I continued to write until I had the bell rang again, signalling the end to lunch period. I gather up my (meager) supplies and quickly make my way to the next class, which was apparently Art(s).

By the time I got to the classroom, I saw that almost everyone was there, and just my luck, Gamzee, Sollux, Tavros, and even Roxy was there, meaning this class was probably going to be the craziest one of the day.

I'm not sure if that's a good, or bad thing.

* * *

**/Authors Note/**

Ugh, I ended it badly again, but I don't want to include Art class yet ((plus my sister is breathing down my neck O.-" ))

((I didn't have time to proofread either -.-"))

**Thanks SO MUCH to all the people who've joined in on this escapade!** **I hope you're enjoying it XD**

(And guys if you like Sadstuck, you should check out gravitysabully and colbaltMnemosyne they're good :D))

Help her out ok?  
  
**Hope you guys enjoyed, hopefully I'll update this weekend :D**

Disclaimer~I don't own anything in this story besides the plot~


	5. BoysThatChaseYourHipsCanJustGo FindTheir

**/Authors note/ ((do you guys even read these?))**

((Gollush I'm sorry guys! My mom made me get off the computer early, so I couldn't finish it as early as I wanted it to! :O( ))

Once again thanks to those who reviewed and such((Wolfen Artist of Hetalia, Death by Violet, Obsessivefangirl03, Captainforkz, Stray Flower, NepetaTheShippingQueen, Pure Yet Dark,Leopardtail, )) **You guys ((not just those that I mentioned but EVERYBODY!))are the only reason I'm updating so much! (Seriously, I'm such a procrastinator it's ridiculous XP))**

This is my second-most popular story! ((Only after a Fairy Tail one :P)) That makes me really happy :D ((wow, somehow I'm happy after watching multiple Sadstuck videos as well as reading Sadstuck fanfictions...how?))

ANYWAY

Apparently everyone has high hopes for Arts class! I seriously hope I don't let you guys down, you all seemed really pumped for it...

If I fail I fail.

((And I realized I made a mistake last chapter, Sollux wasn't supposed to be in the classroom yet, you'll see why when you read, but this is why I try to proofread. My older sister can be so mean sometimes :( ))

So hope you guys enjoy the shenanigans ((if there are any...))

THERE WILL BE GAMTAV ((I forgot to mention that at the end of last chapter -.-"" ))

I'll see you guys at the bottom of the page :D

* * *

I attempted to take a seat at a table that wasn't occupied by morons, but Ms. Harley had to intervene.

"Hey Karcrab! You're gonna sit over there with Gamzee," She said with her signature grin. I grumbled and slouched my way over to the table, reluctantly sitting on the stool. At least these were close to the ground, so my legs wouldn't dangle.

"Karbro! You me and Tavbro are sitting together!" Gamzee yells happily, pulling me into a hug. I wince, seems like my arm isn't going to heal very quickly. He doesn't seem to notice as he turns to Tavros and begins to say some stuff about "mIrAcUlOuS mIrAcLeS" and drink out of a bottle of Faygo. Roxy was sitting across from me, avidly chewing on a pencil and staring off into space, smiling slightly. I didn't even bother greeting her, she always acts like she's drunk. (Although I'm not really sure if it's an act...)

The six-person tables were quickly being filled by students as they flooded into the classroom. I almost didn't notice when Sollux stumbled in, I only found out when Ms. Harley squealed (Yes a 20-something SQUEALED like a little fangirl) and practically skipped over to him. His expression was absolutely priceless as it morphed from shock to fear.

"You must be the new student! Sollux right? Well, you can just take a seat next to Roxy, that girl over there, across from the three guys!" She says in a very bubbly tone of voice, bouncing on the balls of her feet. I smiled a little when I saw the women's head barely reached his shoulders.

He warily tiptoed around her and made his way over to the table. My scowl returned when he looked over at me. Roxy looked up when he perched on the seat next to her, but she merely nodded dreamily and returned to staring.

"Hi KK," He says hesitantly to me, barely glancing up from the table.

"Hi asshole, nice to see you again," I say curtly, crossing my arms and leaning back as much as I could without falling off. Sollux now seems to get defensive, cause his face becomes emotionless. Almost reminding me of our asshole gym teacher. Of course, his shades only partially blocked his eyes.

"You're so crabby, what's your deal?" He snaps back, crossing his arms as well. One of his eyebrows raised inquisitively, the sight strange behind the bi-colored shades.

"Oh Karbro's always motherfuckin' like that...uh, what's your name?" Gamzee asks, releasing Tavros to lean over the table to look at Sollux's face.

"Th'ollux," He lisps, then grimaces at himself.

"Sollux?"

"Yeah."

"Interestin' name Solbro, almost as weird as ours," Gamzee chuckles, closing his eyes as he leaned back in his chair.

"Hm, they are pretty weird, what were our parents thinking?" Tavros replies, shaking his head and smiling.

Karkat groans and slams his forehead against the table with a loud BANG. When he raised his head again, everyone (minus Roxy because she wasn't even paying attention) burst into laughter at his now spiked up hair. Karkat allowed his bangs to flop over his eyes, still scowling.

"Nice job KK, you're th'uch a geniou'th," Sollux guffaws, then reaches over the table and ruffles the shorter teens hair, causing it to spike up even more. Karkat responds to shoving his hand away and furiously patting down his black locks.

"Stop calling me KK fuckass! That's not my name!" Karkat yells, trying to flatten the spikes but instead making it worse.

"Really, who else has two K's in their name?" Sollux continues to chuckle.

"Hey boys, settle down!" Ms. Harley yells good-naturally from the other side of the room, drawing everyone's attention over to their table. Of course it didn't last long because final bell rang, after so long they were beginning to worry that the bells had been turned off.

"Ok! Let's get started with class!" Ms. Harley cheers, quickly moving to the front of the room. "For those of you who don't know, I'm Ms. Harley, or Jade if you'd prefer, and this is Arts class!" She extenuates her enthusiasm by waving her arms around and beaming.

"In Arts class we are not only going to be dealing with Arts and crafts, but also with things like music! And other forms of art!"

_That explains the various musical instruments strayed along the room...as well as the mixed art supplies, _Karkat thinks, setting his chin on his hand once more and glaring at the front of the room.

"But don't worry, I won't burden you with boring research reports, or at least I don't think things are boring," She giggles.

"So we'll definitely have projects?" Some random kid asks, causing laughter to run across the room.

"Yes! In fact I've got a project planned already!"

Now it was groans that ran across the room. I laughed lowly, these people were such babies, they need to learn to deal with things. My thoughts began to turn dark again and I had to shake my head roughly to clear it.

"Oh calm down you babies, I'll only be giving you the instructions today, it's not due for two weeks," she scolds, propping her hands on her hips. I smile a little, one of the reasons Harley was one of my favorite teachers, she related well with everyone.

"You are sitting in those table arrangements for a reason you know, those are you partner groups AND!" She stops any complaints, "It'll be a group grade."

Of course the chorus of groans continued.

"Well, I'll leave you guys to your groans and let you look over the papers, which are under each of your chairs," She said, then retreated to behind her desk.

"Wait, th'o we're in a group together," Sollux states, leaning his elbows on the table. He had the paper laid out in front of him, actually it was more of a packet that an actual paper.

I quickly grabbed my own packet and began reading over it, mouthing the words.

**Beginning of the year Group project******

**Group members: Tavros, Gamzee, Karkat, Roxy, Sollux******

**_Instructions:_******

You will make up a sort of presentation that gives an example of creativity.

**_Requirements:_******

Time-No more than 10minutes

Due-In exactly two weeks (August 21)

-Try not to make it like a report, you shouldn't have to explain creativity!

**_Use your natural talents! :D_******

The other two sheets were for submitting our ideas.

"What should we do?"Tavros asks curiously.

"Well, it has to be creative, are we good with art?" I ask tentatively.

"I can't draw worth a th'it,"

"Not very well motherfucker."

"I'm uh, not,"

"Noep,"

I glance over to see Roxy staring at us, finally seeming to focus.

"Well, look who's decided to join us in reality! It's Roxy!" I say mockingly, poking her forehead.

"Ok wellllllll what're we doin?"

"Trying to think of somethin' for this motherfuckin' project bitchtit's," Gamzee drawls, tapping the packet.

"Yeah, what are you good at?" I ask, not really knowing much about the girl.

"Pssh, not much, can't draw or anythin' before you ask, I guess I dabble in music stuff," She says, her words slurring together slightly.

"Oh hey!" Gamzee interupts, seeming to get an idea, I could practically see the lightbulb flashing over his head, "Tavbro can't you play drums!" Gamzee asks, sounding almost normal.

"Um yeah, a little," the teen says, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

"And Karbro! I know you can play guitar, and sing," He continues.

"Whoa what? Gamz where are you going with this?" I ask quickly.

"Dude we could_ play_ somethin for these motherfuckers!" He says happily, seemingly pleased with his idea.

"HOLD THE FUCK UP!" I squeak, then mentally scold myself, "There's NO WAY I'LL SING, OR PLAY, FOR THESE DOUCHES!"

I could feel people begin to stare but I frankly didn't care much at the moment. It wasn't that I was scared to do it, it's just that I don't like to flaunt my talents.

"Come on Karbro, it's probably the only thing we can do!" The Juggalo pleads, giving my ridiculously pitiful puppy eyes.

"What do you even play!?" I ask desperately, trying to weasel out of it in anyway could.

"Heh, before dad left he taught me bass," The clown says smugly, displaying his hands where I could clearly see callouses on his fingers.

"But what about Sollux!" I say quickly, pointing to the teen.

"Dude, I can play almoth't anything, but I th'pecialize in guitar," he says with a smirk.

"Oh hell no, tell me we're not doing this," I moan, placing my head on the table and covering it with my arms.

"I can sing back up for you Karkat," Roxy pipes up, smiling.

"Yeah! So this is what we're gonna motherfucking do," Gamzee says with a grin.

"Ok fuckass, since I can't dissuade you, let me ask you, what are we even going to sing?" I retort, watching his grin vanish quickly.

"Uh, yeah, we should figure that out," Tavros says nervously.

However the Juggalo has an answer for that as well.

"You can pick a song Karbro! I know you know some motherfuckin' good ones!"

I stare at him, mouth agape. I would've begun cussing him out right then and there if Tavros hadn't interrupted.

**"**Uh, how about something from Get Scared, you know all of their songs, right Karkat?"He mutters softly, but it was enough to stop me from killing the Juggalo. I sit back down again, finding that I had been standing up. No wonder we'd been drawing so much attention. I pinch the bridge of my nose with a frustrated sigh.

"You guys suck ass, you realize that right," I mutter angrily, "Yes, I know all their songs, but I only know the guitar parts for two of the songs, Don't You Dare Forget the Sun, also Start To Fall. Misunfortunate I can play part of it, as well as Hate and Keep myself Alive. I would say Dance with the Dead but it's a bit more complex with the piano and violin parts in the beginning. You guys would have to look up the songs then tell me." I pause when the look at me with wide eyes.

"Oh, but Tavros, it mostly depends on you, if you can't play something, we can't do anything with it, so pick whichever one you think would be best, contact me over the chat client," I say, jotting the names of the songs down and handing them to him. I did the same for the others as well.

"Ok Karbro, I have free period next along with Tavbro, we can go to the computer lab and listen to these bitchin' songs," Gamzee says with a lazy smile. He pulls pout his phone and taps it, indicating he would tell me whichever one.

"Well KK I've got Computer Program next, so I can altho look them up," Sollux says, glancign at his schedule, then pulling out his phone. "what's your Handle?" He asks, tapping the screen a few times to get to the chat client.

"carcinoGeneticist," I reply, opening the chat on my own phone, "Yours?"

"twinArmageddons,"

"Ok," I say, then shut my phone, "I'll probably open a memo so we can all talk, we've got to head to class soon," I say, glancing at the clock to see we've got only three minutes left.

Jade skips over to our table, then sits on the vacant sixth seat.

"So, you got it figured out," she asks with a wink, And knowing look crosses her features as she looks at me.

"Yep, we gotta choose a motherfuckin' song then learn it, then we'll be all good," Gamzee says with a grin.

"Awesome! I knew it was a good idea to put you guys together," She says with another big smile.

"Time to go guys, have fun," She says, standing and retreating to the side of the room. When she was safely away, the bell rang, and everyone began running. I heard some displeasured mumbles as we escaped, and I knew some were displeased with what they were doing, but I smiled.

At least we were capable of creativity.

* * *

**/Authors Note/**

Yay! I was able to finish!

((I got worried, but now I have to go practice violin XP))

**NOW I HAVE A QUESTION THAT YOU GUYS NEED TO ANSWER OR ELSE I CAN'T WRITE THE NEXT CHAPTER  
****  
****I need you guys to choose what song they're going to sing!******

So I do realize that I put Get Scared in the chapter, but I did that mostly cause their songs fit really well, BUT IF YOU THINK ANOTHER SONG WOULD FIT THEN TELL ME AND I'LL**_ CONSIDER _****IT**

The Get Scared songs listed ((If you want to look them up)) are:

Don't You Dare Forget the Sun ((Which you SHOULD HAVE looked up at the very beginning))  
Start To Fall  
Misunfortunate  
Keep Myself Alive  
Hate  
Dance with the Dead

You could also look at the other songs (('cause they're a really good band))

SO

TELL ME SONGS!

I WILL CONSIDER ALL BUT MIGHT NOT CHOOSE THEM

THIS IS NECESSARY FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER

SO please do that :D

Hope you guys enjoyed ((hope they weren't OOC, I did my best with Roxy and Jade -.-" ))

I will see you next chapter! ((I'll do my best to update, I'm now getting a computer time limit -.-"))

Disclaimer~I don't own anything in the story besides the plot~


	6. WayHomeAndAtTheEndOfTheDayYouT hinkToYou...

**/authors note/**

Before I start thanking you guys, did anyone notice that I changed perspectives last chapter?! Why didn't you tell me! Blargh I really hate it when I do that :(

Well it was practically unanimous that Don't You Dare Forget the Sun is the song they're going to play XD I was originally going to use that song in the beginning, but I wanted opinions :D But that will be the song and I hope you guys will enjoy! ((I'm going to try to speed the plot along because I realize I've spent five chapters on one day in the story...or is that ok? I haven't written many really long stories))  
  
**Thanks to those who reviewed, ((and those who read the story!)) (**(Wolfen Artist of Hetalia, Leopardtail, Captainforkz, Scetchbook123, Obsessivefangirl03, 333stepha,sayaingirl21, KuruKecleon, ))  
**  
And welcome to the madness: **iceytoshiro, TheifOfTime, ladybug28, terriblewrighterT.T, nekotenshi93, and America96  
**  
****_amextris (I'll call you that from now on :D))_****: Yay! I'm glad you've reviewed again! :D I like you! ((in a non creeper way...)) But Thanks for the compliment, that made me smile! :D I don't want to be one of those authors who take forever (although I've been putting off my other stories in favor for this one...)) I'm glad that you don't think they're ooc, ((and in all honestly, I only recently got to act 6 cause I'm only allowed to read it at night...stupid computer rules...XP I learned alot from the fandom itself, so you're not alone!)) I'm happy that you're so dedicated to coming back to read my story! ((I would end up forgetting XP )) ((BUt I'm uploading about every day or every other day, depending on how much I can type))  
**  
**_Guest_****: That song would be interesting to use, but I shall use it for something else, not in the project...OH MY GOLLUSH YOU GAVE ME AN IDEA FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER!((maybe not the NEXT one but for one of them XD)) Thanks :D**

**A****_nother Guest ((who used :3 at the end))_****: Thanks for your opinion, and yay! I love the band so much but not many others know about it! It's a sad tragedy. I could probably recommend more bands if you'd like!**

**_Kate Brightside(guest):_**** I 'm going to use Keep Myself Alive for another part of the story, and probably Hate as well. :D  
**  
**((Guest reviewers, please specify yourself so I don't feel like I'm replying to the same person multiple times XP ))** **((Although thanks to those who already have done that))**

**Glad you guys liked the last chapter! ((So I didn't fail as much as I thought))**

**Oh well, hope you guys enjoy and I'll see you at the bottom of the page :D**

* * *

"Hmm, so we've both got computer ap'th huh," Sollux says with a smirk, ruffling my hair while holding his schedule in the other hand.

"Fuck you, I bet you're incompetent with computers," I growl, fighting his hand away once again. My own skills were lax, but this was the best class left, so I took the opportunity. A change seem to go over Sollux's expression as he looked at me, shocked.

"Oh no, dude you DID NOT just in'th'ult my th'kill'th," He says in a horror filled voice. His eyes, that I still couldn't quite determine the color of through the shades, were wide.

"So what if I did?" I scoff, crossing my arms defiantly. We were almost to the classroom, and the halls were practically empty, for which I was glad, it was always easier to argue in silence. But it also made me little self conscious.

Wait what?

I brushed this thought from my mind and refocused on the conversation.

"You know what? Just for that, I'm going to crash your computer for you," He says with a sneer, shoulder bumping me to the side.

"Watch it asshole!" I growl back, shoving into him then rushing through the doorway of the computer lab and claiming a sat next to me of course, but I knew it was because there was no where else he could really sit. I already had my earbuds out and I plugged them in, because lets be honest, whenever someone's on a computer, the first thing you open is YouTube.

I glance up at the board, because the teacher had yet to make an appearance even though final bell had rung a few minutes ago. I had to squint to read it, of course I had chosen a seat in the back of the room.

**Had to leave, don't kill each other, don't get on "bad" sites**

((A/N Really creative name right XP))****

"Yes!Free reign!" I hiss happily, pumping my fist in the air. I logged onto the computer, using a school account and not my own, and begin opening different tabs, one for the chat client, one for YouTube, and mspaintadventures.

However, a minute after I had everything opened, the screen flashed white for a second before blinking into black. I sit there for a few seconds before leaping forward and slapping my palms on the side of the computer monitor.

"What the fuck?!" I yelp, patting it and shifting to view the sides.

"Hahahahahaha! You didn't believe me!" Sollux laughs, clutching his stomach in breathlessness. His face is flushed as he continues laughing at my pissed off expression. His glasses begin to slide down his nose even, but once he notices that he stops laughing to push them back up his face.

"What the fuck, Sollux, turn it back on," I say lowly, stepping back and standing over him.

"Chill out KK, we have work to do don't we," He chuckles, then turns to his own screen and begins tapping keys. I can't tell exactly what he does, but it turns back on my computer, so I didn't really care.

"Yeah yeah," I mutter, then re-open all the things I had before. I see, once I've logged into the client, I see that Gamzee had messaged me a few times

[terminallyCapricious has begun chatting with carcinoGeneticist]  
TC: yO KaRbRo YoU tHeRe?  
TC: HeY  
TC: WeLl Me AnD tAvBrO ArE lOoKiNg aT tHe SoNgS  
TC: HoNk :O)  
CG: GAMZEE I JUST NOW LOGGED ONTO THE CLIENT  
CG: HOW THE FUCK DID YOU EVEN MESSAGE ME  
TC: WeLl YoU wErE LoGgEd On FoR a FeW mINUtES  
CG: YEAH YEAH  
CG: I'LL OPEN THE REGULAR MEMO  
CG: JUST RESPOND TO THAT OK  
TC: AlRiGhT kArBrO :O) HoNk  
[carcinoGeneticist has ceased chatting with terminallyCapricious]

"Hey Sollux," I say, glancing over at him.

"Hm?" he murmurs, continuing to tap away on the keys.

"I'm opening the memo now, I'll send you the link," I growl, annoyed by his indifference.

"Alright KK."

[carcinoGeneticist has begun chatting with twinArmageddons]  
CG: CIRCUS OF THE DUMBASSES  
TA: oh my gog ii2 that really what the memo ii2 called  
TA: holy 2hiit what po22e22ed you?  
CG: WHOA WHAT SORT OF STUPID QUIRK IS THAT?  
CG: AND GAMZEE IS THE ONE WHO TECHNICALLY CAME UP WITH IT  
CG: I DIDN'T REALLY CARE  
TA: well ii'm laughiing iinternally at the moment  
TA: my 2oul ii2 dyiing from the hiilariity  
CG: FUCK YOU  
[carcinoGeneticist has ceased chatting with twinArmageddons]

I glanced over once more and saw tat Sollux was actually fighting back laughter. I snort and turn back to my screen, plugging up and clicking on Get Scared playlist. I gladly retreated into the world of Music and Beats, which drowned out everything else.

[carcinoGeneticist has opened memo: CIRCUS OF DUMBASSES]  
CG: ALRIGHT DOUCHES  
CG: MEMO OPEN!  
[twinArmageddons has replied to memo]  
TA: 2up everyone  
TA: 2o what ii2 the poiint behiind thii2 agaiin?  
CG: TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WE'RE GOING TO PLAY FOR THE PROJECT  
TA: oh yeah  
[adioaToreador has replied to memo]  
AT: sO I'VE LLISTENED TO FIVE OF THE SONGS SO FAR  
AT: bUT, uH, i DON'T THINK I'LL BE ABLE TO PLAY mISUNFORTUNATE  
AT: oR hATE  
CG: OK, I DIDN'T REALLY THINK THAT THOSE TWO WOULD WORK OUT WELL FOR SCHOOL ANYWAY  
CG: WHAT ABOUT THE OTHERS?  
AT: kEPP MYSELF ALIVE IS DOUBTFUL, sAME WITH sTART tO fALL  
AT: i WOULD ALSO SAY dANCE wITH tHE dEAD, bUT I DON'T LIKE THE BEGINNING  
CG:...  
CG: SO YOU'RE SAYING THE ONLY ONE YOU'RE COMFORTABLE WITH PLAYING IS DON'T FORGET  
AT: uH,,,,,yEAH  
TA: awe2ome  
TA: ii liike that one two  
TA: iim lii2teniing two iit riight now  
[terminallyCapricious has replied to memo]  
TC: ThAt Is MoThErFuCkIn AwEsOmE  
TC: CaUsE i LiKe It :O) HoNk  
CG: FAN-FUCKING-TASTIC  
CG: SO THATS THE ONE YOU GUYS WANT  
TC: MoThErFuCk YeS  
AT: uH, yEAH, sURE  
TA: 2ound2 good two me  
[tipsyGnostalgic has replied to memo]  
TG: i liek taht one too  
CG: SO YEAH  
CG: THATS WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO THEN  
[carcinoGeneticist has closed the memo]

I sit back and rub my hand through my hair, probably spiking it up more, but my lack of sleep was catching up again. The loud music helped keep me awake, but only barely. Plus I had another hour of school left, at least it was only an hour. I sigh and pull out the piece of paper, re-opening Don't Forget once again. After only a few minutes of writing, I got another alert from the client.

[twinArmageddons has begun chatting with carcinoGeneticist]  
TA: ii don't even know why iim doiing thii2  
TA: becau2e you're an iignorant a22hole  
TA: but do you thiink you could help me learn the guiitar part?  
TA: ii thiink ii can learn iit, but ii want two make 2ure iim learniing iit riight  
CG: HOLY SHIT  
CG: YOU'RE ASKING ME TO HELP YOU?  
CG: I MEAN, I CAN AND I WILL  
CG: BUT I HONESTLY AM SHOCKED  
TA: well fiine  
TA: bee patroniiziing  
TA: but can ii come over twoniight?  
TA: twomorrow iim bu2y, 2ame wiith the next day  
CG:...  
TA: ?  
CG: OK  
CG: YEAH  
CG: I JUST HOPE...  
TA: hope what?  
CG: NEVER MIND  
CG: YOU CAN WALK HOME WITH ME  
TA: ok  
TA: talk wiith you later kk  
CG: FINE  
[twinArmageddons has ceased chatting with carcinoGeneticist]

I begin worrying my hair, I'm not sure what I had just gotten myself into.

\

The last period passed uneventfully, world history taught by "Dirk" went by quietly, although him and Dave were obviously related, in more ways than one. When final bell rang, I hurried down to my locker, telling Sollux to meet me by the front door. I grabbed my backpack,shooting a nod to Gamzee, and hurried out to wait for him.

While waiting, all my anxieties came crashing down once again, the ones that I had barely managed to push out of my mind. What if my dad was awake, what if he did plan something for me and Nepeta, or my mom, what could-

"Hey!"

I jerk my head up, staring into Sollux's frowning face. I realize that he must've been waiting there for a few minutes, cause he looked pretty annoyed.

"What?!" I snap, then flinch. I hadn't meant to sound so harsh. He scowls and leans back.

"You were zoned out, the last bus left five minutes ago," He states, settling back once again. My eyes widen in fear, and I frantically begin looking around for a clock.

"What time is it?!" I ask, jogging outside to see the clock on the front.

"uh, 4:02," he says, glancing at a watch on his wrist.

"SHIT!" I yelp, then take off running, my backpack bounces against my back sort of annoyingly, but I ignore it. I see Sollux running after me out of the corner of my eye.

"Dude! What the hell!" He shouts to me, his voice hitched from lack of air.

"I've got to pick up my kid cousin!" I yell back, leaping onto the sidewalk and continuing to sprint. I knew that it would only take five minutes to get there, tops.

"You have a kid cousin?" He says in shock, falling behind before speeding up again.

"Yeah, she's in second grade," I reply, seeing the elementary school beginning to loom in front of me.

"Nice," He mutters, then keeps pace behind me.

I'm pretty sure that's the fastest I've ever ran, because I was able to skid to a stop ion front of the school within three minutes. My vision was a little blurry from lack of breath, and i couldn't really hear anything over the sound of my own heartbeat. I was pretty sure Sollux was behind me, but it was hard to tell.

After a few minutes I was able to straighten, and I looked to see Mrs. Aradia holding back laughter, and some other teacher glaring at me. Nepeta was grinning at me from between them.

"See Mrs. Vriska! I told you!" She says happily, then runs forward to tackle-hug me. I almost lose my balance, but Sollux was standing behind me, and ended up falling against him. I can feel his breath sort of whoosh out when my head hits his chest.

"Augh! Sorry Sollux. Nepeta! Don't do that!" I say quickly, then look down at my cousin.

"Hehe! Sorry Karkitty!" She says with a smile, releasing my waist, "Mrs. Vriska said you weren't going to show up, but I knew you would!"

"Mrs. Vriska?" I ask, looking up. "and I was only a few minutes late."

"I'm Vriska," The other teacher says, brushing her blue-black hair over her shoulder, "I teach science and math for your cousin."

"Ok, well thanks for waiting out here with her, I didn't mean to be late," I say nervously, grabbing a hold of Nepeta's hand.

"Yeah, don't do it again," She scoffs, then stalks back into the building. Aradia looks angry at this action, but turns back to me with a small smile.

"Sorry, she can be rather irritable at times, but she can be a good person, I've been friends with her for years," She tells me reassuringly. I smile and wave it off.

"It's fine, but seriously, thanks for watching for her, I didn't leave campus as early as I wanted to," I say, beginning to turn around.

"I'll see you tomorrow!" Aradia yells to me.

I wave at her from over my shoulder, but continue to walk, grabbing Sollux's arm and tugging it until he began following me. He was rubbing his chest, over the spot where my head hit him.

"Damn KK, you have a hard head," He says with a wince, but follows me. I snort and continue walking, not bothering to reply.

"Karkitty, who's he?" Nepeta stage whispers to me, tugging on my sleeve to make me lean down. I smile at her curiosity.

"A friend of mine, we're going to work on a project together."

"Oh, ok! What's his name?" She asks with an adorably curious expression.

"Th'ollux, my name i'th Th'ollux," Sollux says, cutting in before I could reply.

"Sollux? That's a cute name, furry cute," She says with a slight purr to her voice. Sollux stares at her for a few seconds.

"Cute? my name i'th cute?" He splutters in disbelief. I begin to laugh at him, which confuses him even more.

"Yeah! It's cute!" Nepeta says in confirmation, straightening her blue cat hat.

"Whatever you say Nep," I say with a chuckle, earning a sound of protest from Sollux. Before I realized it, we where in front of our apartment complex. My breath rushed out in a sigh when I noticed it and a few worries leaked through my wall of thoughts, but I brushed them away the best that I could and pushed open the door.

The lobby was silent, and there was no one at the desk, so I continued through the room to the stairwell, opening the heavy metal door with a grunt and ushering SOllux and Nepeta through the door.

"5th floor," I say, pointing upwards. Sollux nods and begins to skillfully run up the flights. I snort and follow more slowly behind with Nepeta, who kept staring at her feet and counting the number of stairs we climbed. When we got to the 5th floor door, I once again ushered the two of them through and pointed down the hall once again.

I stopped him in front of the apartment door, and took another deep breath. It seemed fairly quiet at the moment, but I knew better than to get my hopes up too much. Nepeta fidgeted nervously beside me, and she looked up with scared eytes.

With a final sense of dread, I unlocked the door and slowly opened it.

* * *

**/authors Note/**

ANNNND YOU'RE WELCOME

cliffhanger, yep I really did that to you guys.

Sorry, but I don't want to write/type the next part yet XP you'll HAVE TO WAIT (EVIL SMILE))  
And Sorry I didn't update as early as I thought I would, i didn't have enough time to work on the chapters, but at least I have it done now!

Oh yeah! I watched Can Air by the way, have any of you guys seen it? I also watched Serendipity, yup Homestuck Movie times! XD

Um, hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! Feedback is appreciated as always :D

Disclaimer~ I don't own anything in the story besides the plot~  



	7. SelfMyBodyIsAProductBeingSoldO nAShelf

**Wow...Can Air, how much can I fail XD I meant Con Air. I really like it actually! ((the effects are bad, and Cage is a bad actor, but I liked the plot)) SO yeah! hope you guys enjoy the chapter and I'll see you at the bottom of the page :]**

thanks to: iceytoshiro, KuruKecleon, 333stepha, Wolfen Artist of Hetalia, Scetchbook123 ((and to those who've read it))

t.h.s.a (Guest) : Ok! Now that I know who you are XD I love falling in reverse! ((and sorry, I'll have to get back to you on bands, I can't think of any at the moment XP))

* * *

I take a breath and open the door, greeted by silence, as well as darkness. I let out the breath I was holding, and walk inside, keeping Nepeta behind me. Sollux warily comes to walk up beside me. My head keeps swinging from side to side, trying to detect any danger.

"Karkitty...why aren't the lights on?" Nepeta asks quietly, fear obvious in her voice. I hold her hand tighter, but don't respond, I make my way quickly to me bedroom.

"In here," I whisper, opening my door, letting them inside. My lamp was on, which I found sort of strange, but I left my head outside the door for a second, and when I didn't hear anything I ducked inside.

"He's not..." I mutter, then shut up, because Sollux is looking at me weird. "Nepeta, stay in here alright," I say with a smile, a fake smile. Nepeta understands though, she nods and sits down on the floor in front of my bed, playing with the stuffed crab I keep at the end of my bed. While she's occupied, I turn back to Sollux.

He's just standing there awkwardly, and I raise my eyebrow at him. "Just gonna stand there?" I say with a smirk.

He jumps slightly and looks around nervously.

"Sit on my bed, jegus dude," I say, tossing my head in the direction of my bed. I walk over to the corner of my room and grab my guitar, then toss it to him. I then go to my closet. The light of my lamp helped pick out the shadows, and my eyes widen when I see all of my shoes and various romcoms had been moved, it looked as if someone had ransacked it!

"Shit..." I hiss, then spin around. The lamp was on...and things in my room was moved. I turned back, to see that my laptop...wasn't there. Fear leaks back into my system, and I twist around. Nepeta was frowning at the crab now, but continued to make it dance. My gaze traveled over to Sollux, who was messing around on my guitar. Then my gaze traveled up to the door. A shock ran through me as I focused my ears.

Footsteps.

Heavy, drunken, FOOTSTEPS.

I jumped up, and took a few steps, but before I could block the door, it was slammed open, and the dark form of my dad stood in the doorway.

"Damnit! Nep get over here!" I hiss quickly, but the moment my cousin even twitches, my dad lunges forward and grabs her, by her hair. Sollux had jumped back in shock and he was watching the scene with wide eyes, his glasses had fallen off, and I finally saw his eyes. Blue and hazel-red, they were...nice.

"Didn't know you brought someone over," My dad says lowly, his drunken breath smacked me in the face. I couldn't say anything, because he had Nepeta, so I glared at him fiercely, and settled into a crouch.

"Not gonna' answer?" He turns to spit on the floor. Once he's turned away, I take my chance and lunge forward, punching the pressure point near his neck. He shouts and drops Nepeta, I dive and catch her, then roll her over to the bed, where she crawls under. _I taught her well._

Now my dad turns to me, and grabs me by the collar of my shirt. His fist digs into the base of my neck and I begin coughing roughly, but that just makes him grin, showing me ugly, yellowed teeth.

I was about to tell him off, when I saw Sollux stand out of the corner of my eye.

"Dude! Lay off! What are you doing!" He cries out, stumbling over to my dad.

"DON"T!" I yell, but before Sollux could even react, my dad snorts and slams his free fist into his face. Sollux is thrown back into the wall by the force and falls limp to the floor. He groans lowly and lets his head loll. I can hear Nepeta whimper, and she started to crawl out. But she looks up at me, _Don't Move _I mouth. She nods slowly and backs away once again.

"Heheh, boyfriend couldn't do nothin' neither can you," he breathes into my face. I flinch back at the smell of his breath, but growl angrily.

"What the hell? Why the fuck did you-" He cuts me off by punching me in my gut. I gasp in pain and go limp. I'm pretty sure I heard a rib pop, but I didn't have any more time to think. He tightened his grip and shook me a bit, making lights flash before my eyes. He glares at me and licks his thumb before pressing it roughly against the bruise on my cheek. A slice of pain runs through my face, but I just grit my teeth and hold back any noise.

"Hm, actin' tough, but there's no way you'll last through this," He says with a glint in his eye. He takes ahold of my right forearm, his whole hand able to envelope it. fear sparked again as he began to slowly tightnen his grip, apply pressure not only to the bruise, but to the bone itself.

When I grit my teethe harder, he grins, and jerks his hand downward, breaking the bone easily.

Not able to hold back, I let out a scream, shutting my eyes tight as tears begin leaking from under the lids. I can hear Nepeta crying loudly, but there's nothing I can do to comfort her.

"Nighty Night, Punk."

* * *

**~Disclaimer~ I don't own anything in this story besides the plot~**


	8. Tell Me I CanChange,TellMe I Can Change

**/Authors Note/**

Do you guys hate me?

well, here, this chapter should make you happier

:D

** Thanks to those who reviewed ((and those who viewed)) :Leopardtail , iceytoshiro, Captainforkz , Scetchbook123, . , sayaingirl21, NepetaTheShippingQueen, KuruKecleon, Obsessivefangirl03, Lillix-lolita (Guest) , Lejionpounce21, twijazluver,**

**_Amextris_****: heheh, yeah, I'm not to familiar with Tavros's typing quirk, I kinda winged it. I'm still working on reading it, but I'm slowly working my way through. Blargh. Heheh, I like replying to guests actually, the authors note for chapter 5 was just ridiculously long, I don't even know why it was that long, so it's all good :D.  
**  
**_psychoticB_****: It's alright! whenever I start reading a story that's already started I never review for the chapters, I only review for the latest chapter. Heheheh, the feels /:]  
I'm glad you like the chapter titles! I thought it was pretty creative :D ((I'm going to try to make it work that I'll end the story on the last line of lyrics))**

** Welcome to the madness: gravitysabully :3 , , Flamingspain, and TheChibiRiceBall**

* * *

"DUDE SNAP OUT OF IT!"

I jump a little and turn to the side, seeing Sollux glaring at me, but his voice sounded scared, he hadn't even lisped, which sort of shocked me. I mean, wasn't this guy the lisp lord? I turn to Nepeta, seeing her also looking worriedly at me. I was still standing outside the door, staring at the handle as if it was a cursed object. Well, in my mind it was.

"Are you ok?" Nepeta asks softly, gripping my hand a bit tighter. I let out the breath I didn't realize I had been holding.

"Uh, yeah, sorry," I say breathlessly, taking my free hand and rubbing it through my hair. I was sweating a little, which made my hair even more unruly. What was that? I sure as gog hope it wasn't a premonition or-

"KARKAT!"

"WHAT?" I snap. Wait, he had used my actual name...

"Quit zoning out ok? I want to at lea'th't learn a few chord'th before I leave," Sollux says with a sly grin. I froze and nodded stiffly, gripping the doorknob. The vision of Sollux slamming into the wall flashed across my eyes, but I sucked in a breath and opened the door.

All of the tension flooded out of me when I saw that the whole living room was brightly lit, and I could hear the radio playing in the kitchen. All the air rushed out of me and I smiled, confusing both Nepeta and Sollux. I didn't answer their questioning glances, I tugged Nepeta's hand to bring her inside, and motioned Sollux. I closed the door sort of loudly to alert my mom to us being home.

"Alright, CatNep, go ahead to your room," I say gently, releasing her grip and ushering her in that direction.

"Ok Karkitty!" She agrees happily and skips down the hallway. I turn back to Sollux, seeing him curiously looking around the rooms. I snort and grab his arm again, beginning to drag him down the hall. He yelps and I grin in victory. I don't pay attention to my mom, who was doing something in the kitchen, and I try not to glance over at the bedroom, where my dad was definitely sleeping.

I show him to my room and shut the door behind me. I'm even more relieved when my lamp is still off and my closet is as chaotically organized as usual. He stands there awkwardly for a few seconds, trying not to obviously be nosy. I just point at the bed as I walk over to my closet.

"Just sit there alright, here's my guitar," I toss him said object, seeing him expertly catch it. I see his nod of approval as he brushes his hand over the polished wood, settling it on his lap.

I'm easily able to locate my laptop in my mess of a closet, and I unplug it from the charger, tossing it onto my bed as well. My phone is then placed on its charger, which is connected to the laptop charger for some odd reason. I quickly disregard random thoughts and turn to see Sollux inspecting my laptop.

"Thi'th i'th your computer?" He asks, rotating it around while balancing the guitar under his elbows. He seemed like he was trying not laugh, which pissed me off to no end. All my worries flew out the window as I stomped over to him.

"Yeah, why are you fucking asking?" I snarl, trying to snatch it out of his hands. He just laughs and holds it out of reach, holding it by his fingertips.

"It'th th'o OLD KK!" He guffaws, continuing to keep it just out of reach. I growl at him and lean over my guitar, hitting my shoulder against his slightly.

"Give it!" I protest, almost reaching it.

"Alright alright, chill out KK, Here," He says with a final chuckle and shoves it into my face. I snatch it from the air and flip it open, closing out of the RomCom and opening the guitar tab.

"Ok, so I've been learning it from here, I've got the first part down along with the chorus, but here," I take the guitar and hand him the laptop. He stares at it for a few seconds before beginning to pick apart the chords with his eyes. I watch his fingers arrange themselves into the chords for a few seconds before shaking my head and looking at my own fingers.

"Ok, so begin with Am, for the first line, then switch to F," I say, strumming them.

"_You're a mess, tangled in your confidence,"_

"Then you have to repeat it," I finish, strumming them a few more times. He stares at me for a few seconds before taking the guitar from me, replacing it with the laptop.

"Th'o, like this?" He places his fingers where mine were and strums the few chords, glancing up at me for confirmation.

"No...your middle finger needs to be positioned like this," I move his middle finger, "Then you ring finger needs to be in correspondence with your pinkie," I continue, moving his fingers. I then strum the chord for him, watching his face as it glows with realization.

"oh, I get it, then for the choru'th it th'witche'th..." He trails off as he replaces his fingers. He looks at me for approval and I simply nod.

"So, how long have you been playing?" I ask, a little awkwardly. The room was a little to quiet for my liking.

"Th'in'th'e I was in fourth grade probably, you were required to play an in'th'trument at my old th'chool, and I didn't want to play violin, becauthe my dad had taught me already, or tuba or th'ome other th'tupid th'chool in'th'trument, Th'o I taught my'th'elf guitar a'th well a'th piano. Then I th'tarted programming and th'tuff and left tho'th'e thing'th alone," He trails off as his gaze travels to the ceiling, eyes following the latticework of fissures formed by slammings of doors.

"Well, you're good, but I will say you could probably do better," He looks at me weird and I frown, " You're good at Guitar fuckass, if you had actual instruction you could be better than what you are now."

"Did you ever have le'th'on'th?" He asks, stopping his aimless strumming and staring at me intently.

"Well, for a week, then...I had to quit." Yeah, I had to quit because my dad hated it and they had started to notice the new and old bruises on my arms. When I was younger, he tended to avoid my face simply because it drew less attention.

"Why did you quit?"

"Why don't you shut up!" I snap, avoiding looking at him. Out of the corner of my eye I can see his eyebrows raise, but I'm glad, albeit shocked, when he doesn't press any further.

"So...your kid cou'th'in lives with you?" He begins, awkwardly.

"Yeah, her mom died...so my mom took her in," A very foolish decision on her part.

Sollux frowns, "Doe'th th'he have any 'th'iblings?"

"...She has an older brother, but we haven't been able to contact him since the funeral. He had moved out a year before, and only came back to see the procession," I growl through gritted teeth. That was more like the half truth, Nepeta's brother, Equius, decided to travel instead of take care of his sister. I was last the last person he ever talked to, he actually begged me to take care of her. of course, I have, but he ditched her.

"whoa...that'th...not ni'the," He says, for lack of better vocabulary.

"heheh, yeah, not nice is a good term for it," I chuckle. "So why did you move to this crap town?"

"well, my older brother didn't like the la'th't pla'th'e, and my dad move'th alot for his work. He th'aid thi'th pla'th'e will mo'th't likely be really th'hort term, but I'll be able to move out in a few month'th, I'll probably th'tay here to fini'th'h th'chooling," he says, laying back on my bed. He had placed the guitar beside him, making sure that it wouldn't fall off the edge.

I stiffen, looking over at him. "Whoa, what? How old are you?"

"18 and 1/4," He says slowly.

"AND YOU'RE ONLY A SOPHOMORE?!" I yelp.

He chuckles and nods, putting his hands behind his head. "Like I th'aid, we move around alot, I haven't been able to get a good th'chooling, we alway'th moved before I could graduate. My brother is already done with th'chool, but I haven't." He has a small smile on hi face, but through his glasses I can tell his eyes are sad.

"My dad will only let me move out when I'm 19, th'ome th'hit about age appropriate/maturity, I don't really care," He continues.

"Dude, I'm only 16, what the hell?!"

"You're 16? I thought you'd be like 15, you look young," He says, surprise evident in his voice.

"SHUT UP YOU NOOKSNIFFER!"

"Ahahahaha! Chill out KK, you seriously do look young," he breathes, trying to speak through his laughter.

"Ugh, you're an insufferable prick," I growl, grabbing a pillow from behind my back and slapping him over the head with it. He yelps and ducks, his glasses flying off his face, he shuts his eyes and feels around for a pillow of his own, using it to hit me.

"Wait wait! Truce!" he calls after I smack him a few times. He blindly reaches for his glasses, but I dart forward and grab them.

"Ya lookin' for these," I chuckle, holding them by my finger tips. I see him barely open his eyes, and lean forward.

"Yeah, give em!" he says quickly. I keep them out of reach.

"Let me see your eyes, then I'll hand them over," I say say slyly, practically doing a back bend to keep them away from him.

He opens one eye, keeping the other shut tight. I'm shocked by how brilliant a blue it is, it's one of those rare navy colors that you can't find in anyone.

"Come on, the other eye too, seriously, my eyes are fucking red, how much weirder can you get," I coax, mockingly twirling the glasses around my fingers a few times. He growls some curses at me, before slowly opening his other eye. I stop moving and stare in awe. The shade was actually similar to my eye color, a sort of dark blood red.

"Dude..." I trail off as he snatches the glasses fromme. I bend out of my awkward position and look at him.

"They're so-"

"Shut it!" He snaps, positioning them on his face. He hadn't lisped then either.

"CHill the fuck out dude, I was going to say "cool", don't get all stingy," I snarl, batting away his hand, that was on my arm.

"Wait...you think they're cool?"

"Yeah...I mean they're two colors, that's badass, why don't you like them?"

"...Just...reasons," He says slowly.

"Pshh, whatever, ok well, back to..." I turn to look at the clock, it was almost 8:00 pm. "OH SHIT! Dude, you need to head home," I say quickly, grabbing his arm and pulling him up from the bed.

"Whoa what? Why it's only...SHIT!" He curses along with me and stands quickly, almost knocking me to the floor. I grab his wrist and drag him out the door, quickly passing the kitchen.

"I'll be back mom!" I shout, before exiting. I can hear her yell something, but I couldn't quite make out what she said. I close the door and begin running down the hall, him keeping up easily with me. We traverse the halls and end up in the lobby in record time.

"I'll text you later," I say, pretty much breathlessly. He grins and turns.

"Yeah, later!" He says.

I watch him walk out the door, something at the back of my mind was yelling at me, but it quieted once I tried to focus. I wait until he's out of sight before sighing and beginning to turn.

A large palm landed on my shoulder and I paled, stiffening in fear.

"Who was that?"

* * *

**/Authors Note/**

OOOOOH IT"S SO EASY BEING EVIIIL!'

Ok yeah, another cliffhanger guys XP

I'm not sure if I like to torture you or not...question of the day!

Oh yeah, and I might not update for a bit, because I really need to update my other stories! I've been terribly neglectful. So, I'll probably have a week or so before getting back to this story. I'm not going to apologize.

Ok yeah, sorry.

I've seriously got to work on my other stuff XP

**If you don't understand this chapter, message me, because I'll tell you! ((Don't want to ruin this for anyone))**

Plus I need to work on my cosplays, anyone have suggestions to attaching Gamzee horns to a headband?

Well, I'll get back to you guys when i can!

Hope you enjoyed!

-Levy

Disclaimer~ I own nothing in this story besides the plot~


	9. Well I Know YouLay In Bed

**/authors note/**

GUYS

I FEEL SUCH ACCOMPLISHMENT

I CAN JUGGLE

I HAVE TAUGHT MYSELF TO JUGGLE ((in between typing and cosplay XP))

Now all I need are clubs and I can be an official Gamzee! ((well...and a unicycle))

A reviewer asked why it was so important that it was eight o'clock, and I decided to clarify ((if anyone else was curious)).  
1.) Sollux has curfew  
2.) it was getting dark out, if not dark already and Sollux would most likely have to walk home  
3.) ((and most importantly)) KARKATS DAD WAKES UP AT 8PM, IF NOT EARLIER  
So that is why Karkat flipped out, and why Sollux did as well.

Thanks to: iceytoshiro, sayaingirl21, Scetchbook123, Wolfen Artist of Hetalia, KuruKecleon, gravitysabully , America96 , twijazluver , Leopardtail, Captainforkz, Obsessivefangirl03, solkar2692 ,Lejionpounce21, , DarkItalianFairy **, For reviewing. And thanks to all those who read it! :D  
**  
**Welcome to the madness**: marti678, xXCrypticDeceptionXx, Water-Iris-Hetalia, xXGypsyQueenXx, GokunoPico, LolitaPrincessLove, kazziekyau, Dj Crescendo27, Fire-Shiell

ThaneOfStorm: **Yay! I'm so glad you like it! And thanks, I'm happy you think I'm a good writer :D**

Amextri**s: BLARGHADARG I didn't mean to misspell anything, fast typing+ terrible spellcheck= alot of mistakes. Jegus, I'm sorry! Good luck with last day! ((that will be passed when I actually post this.)) what is dA? Please explain, wait do you mean deviantArt? I don't have one if that's what you mean. But I'm glad you're liking the story!**

psychoticB:** Oh I'm sure you along with all the other fangirls/fanboys would protect the two of them. But you see, us authors have twisted minds, you will have to read what happens in the chapter. I'm promising nothing.**

**Thank you all for the suggestions on Gamzee horns! I haven't tried them yet ((I'm being a lazy procrastinator)) But I shall try them when I finally decide to get off my ass and GET CREATIVE ((If you get that reference, you get a cyber-hug, and a cookie...))**

((And I'll give back-story on Equius LATER ;) ))  
  
**So I hope you all enjoy /:]**

and I shall see you at the bottom of the page!

* * *

_Shitfucknooksniffingcocksucker!_

I tense up as I feel the grip on my shoulders tighten slightly. His gravelly voice ground into my ears, making my blood run cold. I stood silent for a few moments before being able to finally choke out a legit sounding answer.

"Just a friend, we have to work on a project for school," I rasp, trying to clear my voice without being too obvious. I can feel him breathing down my neck, meaning that he was leaning down level with me. I refused to turn or otherwise acknowledge him, other than the tensing of my muscles.

"A project? On the first day?" he questions, sarcasm dripping from his tone. I tried not to shudder at the horrible feeling of _KNOWING_ he was right behind me, and that I couldn't move, much less do anything. It was totally dark outside, the lights in the lobby were low, and the building was about to go into unofficial lock down, which meant there wouldn't be many running the halls.

"Yes," Is all I reply. I press the heels of my palms into my pockets, then silently curse the fact that I had left my phone to charge, I should have grabbed it...then done what?

"So what were you and your _boy toy_ doing for this project?" He continues, steadily tightening his grip. I can feel his fingers beginning to form bruises along the my collar bone, I still have no idea how he is this strong. His other hand was now inching toward my right wrist, and I tried to twitch out of reach. Of course, he was still able to grab it.

"We only met _TODAY_, I barely know a _thing_ about him, and we are performing for our _Arts_ class, "I growl, putting emphasis on certain words as I continue to keep my other arm out of reach. A tiny voice at the back of my mind was protesting the things I said, but it took little to shut it up. As long as I had my right arm, I had a slim chance of at least getting away.

"Mhm, interesting, so he doesn't know anything about you?" He presses, finally able to grab my other wrist. I curse myself out, mentally of course, and try to keep calm. If I can catch him off guard, then I can get away, possibly.

"No, like I said, we only met today," I reply, trying to totally relax and lull him into a sense that I was giving up.

"So he didn't happen to see this?" He asks, moving his hand up my arm and pressing on the bruised skin. Although, by now I think the bone itself is bruised by how much pain it's putting my through. But I grit my teeth, fighting to keep almost limp, and shake my head no.

"Good," I hear him grumble, and his grip seems to go lax for a few seconds. Never one to waste an opportunity, no matter how slim, I twist expertly out of his shoulder hold, swiftly pulling back my arm to elbow him hard in the face. I can feel the bone in his nose give slightly, before he releases me.

Knowing then, that I was completely FUCKED, I turned and ran out the fancy glass doors.

I didn't have my phone, and no one knew where I was, plus I was running from my psychotic dad who was determined to kill me.

I could hear his heavy footsteps behind me, and for once I was glad I knew the layout of the property so well. I ran in front of the building, then swung a hard right, sprinting for the alleyway between this building and our neighboring one. There was enough debris to slow him down, but I was nimble enough to leap over the heaping piles and duck under overhanging.

I had made one, fatal mistake though.

It was trash day.

The one day where the city decides to get it's shit together and clean up alleys in the area, and it was just my luck that today was the fucking day they did. I skidded into the alley and had already prepared for jumping over the old overturned shopping cart full of broken appliances, but instead of landing on a pile of newspaper and cardboard boxes, my sneakered feet met cold, hard, concrete.

I hiss as I lose my footing, attempting to regain my balance. And naturally, my dad was able to catch up to me with that small slip-up. I feel his meaty fingers slide through my hair, before getting a good handhold and pushing me down, effectively slamming head downward, onto the asphalt.

I grunt, fighting back any screeches or screams. I hear a crunch before dull pain floods through my face, and blood starts flowing down it. The crimson liquid pours out of my broken nose like a faucet as Silas pulls me back up again, then does that once more. I feel a tooth pop out, and I'm sad to see it was one of my canines as I spit it onto the ground.

"Hm, you see punk, there are consequences to _ACTIONS_!" He growls, shouting the last word. He had taken my wrist and twisted it sharply to the side, and I felt it pop out of it's socket. This time I let out a poorly muted scream, shuddering at the feeling. He released me, letting me fall limp to the ground.

I barely stopped my head from hitting the hard ground, which would've resulting in me being knocked out. But it came at the price of my elbow, which now was bleeding heavily, and numb from pain. I panted a few times, trying to get up the energy to move, but my vision was blurring slightly from the pain. As if it wasn't hard enough seeing him in the dim light of the alleyway.

He smirked at me, then took a few steps. I tried to prop my self up on my left arm, my better arm, but he took that as a sign to act, and kicked me hard in the chest. I felt all the air rush out of me as I was knocked through the air, and hit the other building. I began coughing and wheezing, trying to force any sort of air back into my lungs. The whole front of my chest ached now, and I could barely keep my eyes on him. Silas laughed lowly, I was barely able to detect it in my state of pain, but he then pulled me up again, this time by the shirtfront.

He didn't say anything, just grinned that cruel grin as he reached up and socked me, right across the old bruise. He released his grip just enough for me to fly back into the brick wall. As I slid down however, now wishing for unconsciousness, he picked me up again.

"You can stay here, and _rot _for all I care," he breathes in my face, promptly dropping me again. Now with no strength to support me, I thud back to the ground, my head making harsh contact. White flashes across my vision before fading totally to black.

/

* * *

((3rd omniscient POV))

Silas gives one last kick to Karkats unconscious body before laughing cruelly and walking back out of the alley. The boy was in deep enough that he couldn't be seen from the streets, and there wasn't anyone around anyway. The boys father continues inside the building, not bothering to conceal the blood on his hands and clothes from beating the boy almost to a pulp.

When he enters their "home" his wife, Layla, is standing at the doorway, a mixture of horror and anger on her face.

"Where's Karkat?"

Silas pays no mind to her and continues into the kitchen, going to the sink to was the blood off of his hands. But the wife follows him in there.

"Tell me where Karkat is, Silas!" Layla snaps.

Silas growls lowly before spinning around and slapping her full across her face. Because his hands were still wet from the water, the sound echoed throughout the kitchen.

"He's walking his friend home you LITTLE BITCH! LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE!" He shouts, storming past her. The force of the slap had left her reeling, and she struggled to stay upright before turning slowly, seeing Nepeta staring sadly at her from the doorway. Silas had completely passed her, not even yelling at her.

"He's lying," she states sadly, hugging a horse plush that Equius had given her. Layla bites her lip, but nods, before finally stooping down and pulling Nepeta into a hug. The cat girl fights back tears and hugs back.

"Sweetie, you know we can't do anything though," Layla whispers, kissing Nepeta's head. Nepeta nods into her shirt and the two of them sit there, crying, with no one who could help them.

((Sollux POV))

Almost 3/4 home, I suddenly realize two things, that I had left both my favorite jacket and my homework papers in Karkats room.

With a spew of curses, I look at my phone, in all technicality, I had 5 minutes before curfew was up. As my last resort, I opened up my contacts and texted my dad.

**From: Sollux  
To: Dad**

damniit dad iim 2orry but ii left my jacket and homework at my friiend2 hou2e, ii have two go back and get iit but iit mean2 iill bee home late, dont freak out alriight?  
Love you

I stand there staring at the word "friend" for a few moments before deciding to just send it. No harm in saying that anyway. A response text comes back almost immediately and I'm almost shocked by what he says.

**From: Dad  
To: Sollux**

Alright kiddo, just don't get kidnapped or some shit, call me and I'll come get you if need me.

After a few moments of contemplation, I decide against calling him and double back, sprinting towards Karkats apartment building. It was rather creepy running in this sort of town, especially with all of the silence, and the lack of people. I listen to the pounding of my heart and feet, keeping a good rhythm as I get closer and closer to his home. The streetlights began getting dimmer and dimmer the closer I got, which sort of creeped me out even more.

A strange sort of foreboding feeling comes over me the closer I get to the building, almost like an inkling of fear. I feel my heart rate speed up as I slide to a stop in front of the glass doors and my hand is hovering over the handle before I freeze, looking over to my right. Almost as if possessed, I lowered my hand and turned totally, the feeling was now identifiable in my mind.

The feeling, it was of fear...and the need to protect someone.

It was the feeling of utter doom to say the least.

And it freaked me out, because the last time I'd felt like this was when my brother had his...freakout.

I've learned to trust my inner feelings, even miniscule ones. Actually, it was a feeling that made me ask Karkat if I could practice with him tonight, because to be completely truthful, I wasn't busy at all for the next week. The feeling told me to, actually it more like forced me to ask him. I can remember the flash of fear in his eyes as he thinks it over, then agrees.

I took a few steps forward, then a few more. The feeling was getting stronger the closer I moved towards the side of the building. I stop in front of a dark and empty alleyway, contemplating whether or not I should actually enter, but the feeling was much stronger here, I could barely stand still with the force of it. So with a quick decision, I brushed away all thoughts and ran forward.

I couldn't see anything, but despite that fact, I could feel that someone was there.

I debated whether to ask if anyone was there, but then decided against it, I didn't want to scare anyone off. I instead flipped open my phone, setting the light to the brightest and proceeding slower than I had in the beginning. I could hear the sound of dripping...but that wasn't logical at all, it hadn't rained for days and the drainage pipes for everything was tucked away. It could always be a leak, but something made me stop.

I shined the light at my feet and freeze, all the blood rushing from my head when I saw it wasn't water, it was too dark...and too red. Now on full alert I swing the phone light to my left side, and freeze again. It looked like a bundle of clothing, but I recognized the striped black and grey sweater. The source of the blood puddle was from him...

I run forward and fall to my knees beside him, almost dropping my phone. I carefully turn him over to face me, because he was formerly face down on the pavement. I felt like I had been punched in the gut by how the air rushed out of my lungs.

"Kk...KARKAT?!" I whisper yell, horror dripping from my voice. He doesn't respond, he continues to lay there limply, his mouth slack. The blood on his face was beginning to dry, and I could tell his nose was broken. There was a gash on his forehead as well, along with a darker bruise on his cheek. I let my gaze travel downwards, shifting to hold his head in my lap. His wrist was at a weird angle, and I had to put a hand over my mouth to keep from being sick, because it was dislocated.

I didn't want to move him to much, but he had to be taken care of.

I pulled out my phone, barely even hesitating.

"Dad, please, I need you to come get us," I whisper.

\

* * *

My dad books it over, he must've broke speed limits because the house was 20 minutes away, and he got there in a bit before 10 minutes. I told him to park far away though, so he wouldn't draw attention.

When he arrives, I barely say a word, I just shine the light of my phone on Karkat's face. I watch my dad pale before walking over.

"Do you want me to carry him, or do you want to do it?" He asks breathlessly.

"I will, but dad...I'm not sure what we're going to do about this after he wakes up," I whisper, gesturing to the building. My dad shakes his head and motions for me to follow.

"We will deal with it when we have to deal with it, but your friend obviou'thly need'th help. Come on."

I nod quietly and lift my unconscious friend from the ground. I can feel some blood soaking into my sleeve, but I do my best not to his any of the visible pain spots. My dad and I jog over to the car, which he had parked two blocks away. I climb into the backseat and lay him down, keeping his head on my lap like I did in the alley. His breathing seems sort of raspy, and that makes me frown, but I barely have time to worry as my dad once again books it, only this time, he heads home.

I slowly begin brushing my fingers through Karkats unruly hair, feeling the mixture of soft silk and dried blood. I continue to do it no matter how much I disgust myself at the moment.

A thought goes into my head and I scramble for my phone, maneuvering it out of my pocket while still keeping ahold of Karkat. I flip it and check to see if Karkat has his phone, which he doesn't.

I dial his number and sit back in the seat, methodically petting his hair while watching cars zoom by. The lights captivate me for a moment before I hear a soft click, and the faint sound of breathing, although it's slightly hitched, like the person was crying.

"K-karkitty isn't h-here right now," a soft voice tries to say, but it comes out more broken

"Nepeta? That'th you right?" I ask softly, thinking of how sad she must be.

"Purrhaps...is this Sollux?" She asks, slipping into a cat pun before holding back tears. I begin to feel sad just by listening to her sniffles, so I pout on a happy whisper.

"Nepeta, don't worry alright? I found Karkitty, me and my dad are taking him home to take care of him, there'th nothing to worry about." I can feel my dads eyes on me, but I ignore them and listen to Nepeta silence herself, then her voice is happier as well.

"r-really?..." her voice goes quiet and I can hear the sound of the phone shifting through hands. A women's voice talks now, and I assume that it's Karkat's mom.

"Take care of him, Ok? I'll try to...make things better, but can he stay at your place...until then?" She sounds so uncertain, and yet I'm tempted to chuckle. I just smile.

"Of cour'th'e Mr'th. Vanta'th, call me when you want to check up on him," I say softly, looking down at Karkat. No matter how gently I pet his hair, he still seems to be in pain, and that's whats worrying me so badly. He has to be pretty badly hurt if he's not peaceful when unconscious. Wow, who am I kidding, he has every reason to be tense.

"Ok, goodby Sollux," She says quickly, then clicks off the phone. I frown before putting it back into my pocket. Without looking up, I begin to explain to my dad.

"That was his mom, I have no idea what their life is like, but apparently he need'th to th'tay with u'th until everything i'th th'orted out," I say softly. I can tell we're getting closer to home, but that makes me all the more anxious.

"Fine...ok we're here," my dad replies, skidding to a stop in front of the house. He opens the door for me, and I slide out, carrying Karkat bridal style once stirs slightly when I do this, and I hope to whatever God is out there that he doesn't wake up. But all he does is moan lowly and lean into me a bit more. I can faintly feel a blush on my cheeks, but I will it down as my dad opens the front door.

I can tell my older brother is already holed up in his room for the night, because the hallway light was off, but I'm glad for that...he can be a nuisance sometimes.

I walk into our poorly furnished living room and put him the only comfortable place, the couch. I hear my dad head to the bathroom and begin rifling through things, but I return my worried gaze to Karkat. He was completely limp now, and his face was really pale, paler than it should be. I hesitantly look at his wrist again, flinching when I saw it was still the same.

All the blood was dried on his face and hair though, which I found quite unnerving. I wandered how long he had lain there, unconscious in the alleyway. I'm glad when my dad returns, holding a damp towel. He shoves it towards me, then kneels beside me. I begin gently wiping the blood off of him while my dad sets to work on his wrist. Subconsciously I thank my dad for taking that medical class so many years ago. He was able to pop the wrist into place with a sickening pop/crunch sound, then begins splinting and setting it.

Karkat twitches his eyelids when this happens, but he makes no other movements, so I continue. He had even gotten blood on his _eyelashes. _When I finish wiping away all of the blood, I realize how bad he must've been hit. The gash on his forehead, above his eyebrow, was a bit deep, and the bruise on his cheek was now almost black, and was swollen the slightest bit. His nose was probably the worst, it was black and purple, standing out against his pale face, and it had been almost flattened. Plus, his lip was split in multiple places, which was causing a bit of fresh blood to drip down his chin.

"Dad, fix hi'th no'th'e before you do anything el'th'e," I say anxiously, glancing over at him. He had already finished patching up Karkat's wrist, and had started to work on his elbow, which was still bleeding slightly. I see him glance toward me and I move to the side to let him get a full view. he frowns and nods.

"Go get me some more cotton circles will ya?" He asks/orders. I sort of willingly jump up and run down the hall toward the bathroom. I can hear Mituna in his room playing some sort of video game, but I ignore him and grab the cotton thingies that dad wanted. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and paused.

I looked scared, really, really scared. My glasses blocked only half my emotions, but the half that I could see spelled our FEAR. Shaking my head, I run back out to see that my dad had basically fixed and set the broken bones. I have no idea what he did or how he did it, but it didn't look flat anymore, which I was glad. But the bruising still looked pretty nasty. I wordlessly handed over the cotton circles, sort of turning away so I wouldn't have to see the bone being properly set or anything.

When he was done, he returned to his elbow, but I frowned slightly. His right arm...earlier today... I see that his right arm is the one that his wrist had been dislocated. But nonetheless, I pull back the sleeve and look at his forearm. I hiss lowly when I see that there's a dark purple bruise running along the bone. It's no wonder he had been biting back a scream when i grabbed him at lunch today.

My dad turns to me again, done with the elbow.

"Dammit, ok, we need to th'ee if hi'th rib'th are bruised, I'm not liking how he'th breathing," He says quickly motioning towards Karkat's chest. I nod and move aside, letting him do the undressing.

We both sit there and stare for a moment, for me because I was shocked at how fit he was, and for my dad, because of the various bruises and scars littering his torso. I suddenly think of how strange this must be, I mean, I only met this guy today, and yet i was acting like we had been friends forever. Which somehow it felt as if we had been.

But my eyes finally see pat his thin frame, and to the dark bruises over his ribs. No wonder he was breathing weird, they looked like they hurt. And not only that, but there was a mark directly in the center of his chest that looked like it had been made by a shoe. And assuming from the bruising around it, I bet it was.

Whoever the hell did this was making my blood boil.

Why would someone hurt a kid like Karkat? The crabby asshole that "knows all". Even though he was a bitch to deal with, it's not like I'd want to hurt him this bad. I snap back to reality when I watch my dad run his hand over the bruises. His somber expression deepens.

"There's nothing I can really do for bruises, it seems that he was either kicked a lot or he landed against a lot of things. Although this," he points to the bruise in the center of Karkats chest, "was made by a shoe. So someone most likely kicked him while he was down." I growled some unpleasant things under my breath, then turned to my dad.

"Th'o, how about letting u'th th'tay home from th'chool," I say, in a completely serious tone. My dad snorts, turning back to me.

"Do you think I would let Mituna take care of him?"

I crack a smile and chuckle, rubbing a hand through my hair, then look back down at Karkat. He seems to be more sleeping than being unconscious, which makes me sigh happily.

"I'll go get a fresh shirt for him, I don't think he should wear that bloody thing," My dad says, standing up. I just nod and watch him walk away. I pull out my phone and glance at the time, seeing that only a few hours had passed. It was only 11:18, and I had called his mom around 8:18. I sighed and sat back, watching him breathe for a few moments. My dad came back with shirt and got it onto the small boy somehow. It was one of Mituna's old long sleeved t-shirts, so it was rather large on him.

"I'll let him sleep in my room," I say simply, scooping him off the couch. My dad grunts and begins to gather up the first aid shit he had used. I quickly escape to my bedroom, trying not to hurt Karkat anymore than he already was.

My room was dark, and I almost fell over a computer monitor, but I caught myself with a low curses. I turned on the light and stumbled over to my bed. I placed him on the bee sheets, gently placing him on the side that was the least bruised. I huffed out a breathe when he seemed to sink into the old mattress, sighing slightly. I stared a thim for a few more seconds before pulling the comforter upover his shoulders, and sitting down on the floor, leaning back against the bed.

My fingers laced themselves into my hair and I pulled slightly, ignoring the dull pain.

"What have I gotten myself into?"

/

* * *

After wallowing in self pity for about an hour, I finally looked up, blurry eyes barely making out that it was almost 1a.m. I wasn't terribly tired, so I heaved myself to my feet, popping my back and arms before stepping around my various projects and sitting down in front of my computer. The monitor was black, and I cursed when I saw I had turned it off. A headache was staring to pound at the front of my head and I massaged my temples in a futile attempt to appease it.

I looked over at my bed, seeing that Karkat was basically in the same position that I had left him. My sleep deprived mind made me look at the floor, then contemplate the couch. With a sigh, I walked over to my twin sized bed and stood over it, looking at Karkat's small frame, and how much room he was taking up.

With a groan I took off my shoes and socks, slipped out of my shirt, and scooted him over. I was glad when he didn't make any noise, and i practically collapsed beside him. With one arm over my eyes, I drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**/Authors Note/**  
**Wow, I seriously was going to upload this earlier, but I got a little depressed and ended up watching Clannad and Angel beats instead of working on this. Plus some sadstuck, I locked myself in my room for a day. Sorry about that, I just get like that sometimes. I'm the slightest bit bi-polar, so I literally flipped from being pumped to write this chapter, to wanting to curl up in a ball and sob myself to sleep.**

**Yup.**

**You can probably tell the difference from the beginning authors note and the ending one...**

**It doesn't help that I'm sleep deprived, and not because I've been typing all night. I stay up till almost 3 am every night for the opast week, watching anime. **

**Yup, this has been my summer so far.**

**I'll do my best to get the next chapter out, hope I'm not ridiculously sad or anything.**

**Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this, and I will see you next chapter.**

**-Levy**

**~Disclaimer: I own nothing in this story besides the plot~**


	10. Contemplating Your OwnDeath

**/Authors Note/**

**Wow, sorry guys, I felt like shit for a few days, probably from lack of sleep, and the weather had given me a headache, but now I'm working on it! I've been trying to get more sleep too, because I do have things to do XP**

**As always, thanks to:** , Scetchbook123, Obsessivefangirl03, Wolfen Artist of Hetalia , Captainforkz, gravitysabully, GokunoPico, America96, Leopardtail, KuruKecleon,ellie bea,** For the Reviews**

**AND WELCOME TO THE MADNESS: **goldchild2, Death by Violet, Fire-Shiell, Aurineko, carcinoGeneticistCG,

**ThaneOfStorm: **I like to make people feel special :D I know that when I'm mentioned in a chapter or something that I'm really happy, so I make others feel that way :D And I know, I'm so cruel to Karkitty, but you'll see what shall happen /:]

**Silent Reader: **Heheh! Glad you liked it! And yeah, the song title chapter stuff seemed creative to me! And yes, Mituna is there, but I have no idea if I'll include the other dancestors. But Mituna is probably around 22, unless if I change it later.

**As a warning guys, I'm terrible at fluff. Well, more like mediocre, but...yeah. **

**Also, I'm doing my best with Mituna XP You will learn more about him...probably later unless if I fit it into this chapter.**

**But I hope you enjoy and I'll see you at the bottom of the page!**

* * *

((Karkat's POV))

I honestly didn't know what to expect when I woke up, probably cold, hard ground and me hurting like hell, but that isn't what I felt.

I woke up slowly, sort of easing into consciousness, so the first thing i really noticed was the pain in my chest. With every breath it felt like the skin was being stretched harshly against bone, so I did my best to keep my breaths shallow. Then I noticed that my right wrist wasn't really moving, and that it was bound by something. I then realized that I was not lying on cold pavement, but instead on a soft mattress.

My eyes snapped open, but all I could see was darkness, meaning that wherever I was, was dark. I shifted slightly, and let out a small "eep" when my head bumped against something. I was facing the wall, so I didn't know what it could have been. I shifted my head again, and carefully turned it, flinching slightly. I froze when I saw that I was leaning against a bare chest, which was breathing deeply in sleep. He was hugging me, spooned against my back. I noticed how tall he was, before my mind went blank.

Being one to act on instinct, I jerked out of his grip and sat up, hitting my head on the wall.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!"

My shout awakened whoever it was that had been hugging me in his sleep. He also sat up, making a confused noise before looking in my direction.

"Karkat? You're awake?" he asks sleepily. I could make out that he was rubbing a hand over his face. I stiffened when I recognized his voice, instinctively staying back against the wall.

"Sollux? Why the hell are you sleeping next to me. Correction, where the fuck am I? Why the hell is it so dark? This isn't my shirt. What is on my wris-" I get cut off when I felt his hand grip onto my arm and pull me towards him. I let out a strange sort of gasp when I realize that he's hugging me.

"Th'ut up Karkat, you talk to much th'ometime's," he mutters, his breathe soft against my ear. He pulls away after a few seconds, leaving me stunned and staring into the darkness. I was brought back to reality when Sollux leans over and snaps on a lamp. The light blinds me for a second before I'm able to bring my hand away from my eyes. Sollux is sitting cross legged in front of me, hand brushing his hair and rubbing at his eyes.

I look over at the table that the lamp was on, noticing there was a clock. My gaze unblurred and I yelped when I saw the time.

"It's 2:14, we're so late," I croak, clearing my throat. I start to jump up but end up falling onto the bed again with a low hiss. Sollux seems shocked by the action and moves to catch me, but ends up falling on his face.

"Calm down KK, my dad let us th'tay home, he called in for u'th too, th'o calm down," He says quickly, motioning his hands in a 'calm down' motion. Not like I could do much while I'm just about writhing in pain.

"You better...start...explaining," I say between breaths, pressing my hand against my chest. Sollux's bi-colored eyes are wide, obviously conflicted about something.

"Ok, jeez. I left my th'tuff at your hou'th'e by ac'thi'dent, but when I went back I found you inthtead. My dad brought you home and we patched you up," he reports, glancing away from me. I'm able to breath better now, but it still hurts. I begin to feel the bruises now, all the injuries rushing back with memory of last night. My back hurts like hell, most likely from being slammed into the wall. And my ribs are bruised, along with my arms. I lift up my left arm, feeling my elbow was both cut and bruised badly. But I used my left hand to probe at my face. The bruise on my cheek was worse, and my nose had been broken, but now was set with something. And I had a gash on my forehead.

"You were uncon'th'ciou'th when I found you, so you've been out for about..." he focused on doing the math in his head, "14 hours? I think that's right." He runs a head over face again, still trying to wake up.

"So, you basically took me here, to your house, fixed me up, and ended up sleeping in the same bed as me?" I theorized, wincing as i continued to poke at my chest and arms to check out how bad the bruises are. I felt Sollux's concerned gaze on me, but i didn't look up to meet it. After a few awkward moments of mutual silence he got off of the bed and turned on an overhead light.

I blink the brightness away for a few seconds and use the light to closer examine my wrist and arms. I look around his room a bit, interested in all of the computer parts lying on the floor along with the various video games. He hadn't totally unpacked yet, the fact being made obvious by the stack of cardboard boxes in the corner of his room. But he did have a TV set on the floor with multiple gaming consoles beside it.

"Do you want to get a shower? I can lend you some clothes," he says only a little awkwardly. I glance up to see that his bare back is to me and that he's reaching inside of his dresser for a shirt, I assume. I return my gaze to my lap quickly, fighting down a blush. Banishing all thoughts of how nice he looked shirtless, I found my voice again, to answer his question.

"Yeah, thanks, but what about my wrist?" I ask, looking up again to see that he's fully clothed and walking towards me once more. He frowns slightly, but simply sits down on the bed and gently grabs said wrist. He rotates it, closely examining the bandages and whatever else had been used on it.

"I can probably replicate what my dad did, th'o don't worry about it," he replies, releasing my wrist and handing me some folded clothes. I accept them with a nod and make the move to stand again. Now that I was fully conscious, I was able to stand without any difficulty. Although, Sollux obviously looked prepared to catch me if I happened to fall. He stood wordlessly and lead me out of his room, down a lit hallway and opened a door.

He walks inside and I follow. Grabbing some towels, he hands them to me then points at the shower-head.

"You th'hould be able to figure th'tuff out, I'll be around the hou'th'e, but when you're done, come tell me so I can wrap your wri'th't," he says with a small smile. I nod, smiling back slightly. He absconds quickly, shutting the door with a soft click. I notice that there is a lock, so I make use of it.

Then I shower, it's not like I was just going to stand around hoping that all the dirt on my body would magically disappear. I had a dried layer of mud from the alleyway, and I was sort of shocked that Sollux was able to sleep next to me when I was like this. I brush away the thoughts of him sleeping with me and how comfortable it was. I'm able to fully take note of all my injuries. The warm water helped soothe the scrapes and bruises on my arms and legs, and the steam helped me breathe easier. I washed quickly, then got out, drying myself off.

I put on my own undergarments, and I looked at the clothes Sollux had given me. I put on the jeans first, and I felt that familiar annoyance when they sagged low on my waist. The waistline was just low enough to be uncomfortable, but high enough that it only showed the elastic band of my boxers. As if that wasn't enough, the ankles were dragging on the floor. I groan in exasperation and look around for anything that could be used as a belt of any shape or form. The bathroom was pretty much bare besides a rack of towels. I growl and attempt rolling the top, but that doesn't help my case at all. I turn to the shirt and begin the painful process of getting it over my head, my chest, and letting it hang loosely...around my fucking mid-thigh!

I give up on the clothes completely, although I knew it would come back to bite me in the ass later. When I attempted to take a step I stepped on the jeans and almost fell over, barely catching myself on the edge of the sink. There was that bite in the ass. With a sigh I shake my head roughly side to side, ridding it of the droplets hanging from the ends of my spiky hair.

I walk out of the bathroom, hand combing my hair. I return to Sollux's room, but saw that it was vacant. I sort of cradled my wrist and tried not to jostle it too much. I turned around and tried to figure out where he could be. The hallway consisted of three doors, one that lead to the bathroom, one to Sollux's room, then one to an unknown room. Then it dead ended at another door that I assumed was another bedroom. So I walked forward, arriving in what seemed to be the living room. A large doorway adjacent to me led to the kitchen, where I saw Sollux making some sort of sandwich.

I quietly walk up behind him, looking over his shoulder to see that he was making a honey and peanut butter sandwich. He doesn't seem to notice me and just quietly continues. It's only when I speak that he jumps in surprise and turns back to me.

"You can wrap my wrist now," I say simply, leaning back from looking over his shoulder. He turns to me with wide eyes, and I still can't get over how uniquely pretty they are.

"Je'thu'th KK, I didn't even hear you come in!" He yelp, spinning around to look at me. After a few seconds of staring, he bursts into laughter. I immediately scowl and start to cross my arms over my chest, then stop when I think of how much it would hurt.

"Why the hell are you laughing?" I growl, glaring at laughs for a few more seconds before wiping an imaginary tear from his eye.

"Tho'the clothe'th KK, th'orry but they're th'o big on you," He gasps, trying to speak around his laughter. I growl lowly, but hold up my wrist, trying not to slap him or anything.

"Oh yeah, um, give me a thecond, I've got honey on my handth," He replies, turning to the sink. I huff out a breath, trying not to wince, and walk over to table and sitting down. He grabs the things that his dad had used and walks over, getting to work. I stare at the front door, not looking at him even once. And he doesn't look at me either, which is good thing. When he's done, he stands up and retrieves his sandwich.

"What, no food for me?" I say with a small smirk, standing as well and making the move to follow him. Naturally I forgot that I needed to pick my feet up and tripped over the stupid god damn jeans. I began falling forward, letting out a yelp. Sollux turns and does some weird kendo move and ends up sliding on the ground so he's situated below me. I end up falling on top of him, head hitting his chest.

"Fuck these jeans!" I yell angrily, breaking the awkward moment. Sollux chuckles and lifts up onto his elbows, causing me to fall over to the side.

"Th'orry dude, I can athk my brother if he ha'th a belt," He offers, kneeling to help me up off the floor. I rub the front of my head where it had hit Sollux and took his hand. He easily pulled me off the ground and set me properly onto my feet.

"You have a brother?"

Sollux looks uncomfortable for a few seconds before nodding. "Yeah, I told you remember? But I'll go ask him," He says quickly, absconding once again. I frown when I realize he had told me, but he hadn't lisped when he answered me just then. I brush it off, keeping it at the back of my mind for the time being, and follow him down the hall. He goes into the room adjacent to his, not even bothering to knock.

""Hey 'Tuna! Do you have a belt or th'omething that I can borrow?" I hear him yell. A video game was apparently being played, because the sound of gunshots and screeching cars was silenced.

"Why do you need it?" A voice asks.

" A friend, do you or not?"

"Th'ure, calm your tit'th, over theregh."

I retreat back to the kitchen and sit down again, not wanting to repeat the falling incident. Sollux returns a few seconds later, tossing me a belt. I sigh and apply it to my jeans or whatever the fuck you want to call it. For them not dragging on the ground, I had to pull them almost to the bottom of my ribcage. I'm sure SOllux was holding back laughter, but I ignored him for the time being.

I look over and grab a slice of bread, popping it into my mouth. We silently eat for a few moments before I get up the nerve to speak again.

"So what should we do now?" I ask, contemplating whether or not to actually make a sandwich or just eat another piece of bread.

"Well, I have video games, and my computer, and my guitar, take your pick," He replies, brushing his hands free of any breadcrumb dust.I frown at the loaf of bread for a few seconds before grabbing another slice and turning to SOllux.

"We can start with video games I guess, it's only 4 o'clock," I say past a mouthful of bread. He nods in consent and leads me back to his room. I follow quietly, glancing at the door that leads to his brothers room before following Sollux.

"So what sort of game do you want to play, Action, Mystery, Scary, I've probaby got any kind that you would want," He says with a smirk, handing me a controller while turningon the game console and TV.

"I don't care, just fucking pick something," I reply, settling down on the floor in front of his bed.

He smirks at me before inserting a game and sitting next to me..

After anput an hour of him kicking my ass at video games, I decided to rage quit, as per usually quitting methods, and blatantly refuse to play anymore.

"FUCK YOU SOLLUX! FUCK! YOU!" I shout, throwing the controller at him and crossing my arms angrily, temporarily blocking out the pain. He continues to laugh despite my rage and simply shuts of the console.

"You th'uck at thith KK," He chuckles, standing up to walk over to his computer. I ignore him and stand up too, sitting on his bed. I opened my mouth to yell more curses at him, bu tI was interrupted by a ringtone.

Sollux curses and runs over to his phone, flipping it open and answering it.

"Th'up?"

He stands there listening for a few moments before paling and turning to me. He silently hands it to me, blatantly ignoring my curious looks. When I answer, I understand why.

"Mom?"

* * *

**/Authors Note/**

**I CAN SEE THE TEARS STREAMING DOWN YOUR FACE AS YOU READ THAT FINAL LINEE**

**MWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAhAhAHAHA **

**So, um yeah!**

**Have you guys read the updates to Homestuck? if you haven't DO IT NOW And ColabHQ (((On YOUTUBE))) Has just gotten to the part where AradiaBot BOTSPLODES after hugging Sollux. I'm in emotional pain right now D":**

**But here is your update, and I hope you guys motherfucking enjoy everyfuckingtearyoufuckingshed. Wow, I'm feeling really mean today... I guess it's because of how much sadness I'm dealing with. REALLY HUSSIE?! FUCKING! *REALLY*! I'm ready to kill some bitches.**

**But anyway, I hope you enjoyed this, and I will see you next chapter /:]**

**Disclaimer~~I own nothing in this story besides the plot~**


	11. Well Just Look at What You'veDone

**/Authors Note/**

**So the reason this took me so long to type, is because I literally had almost the whole chapter written, but then I realized that if I posted that chapter NOW then I wouldn't be able to do some stuff that I need to do before hand. So I had to basically re-type this whole chapter. Sooooooooo now that I think about it, the ending to the last chapter is probable over dramatized. Sorry bout that. **

**Thanks to**: Leopardtail, FireStorm8888, Scetchbook123, sayaingirl21, Captainforkz, Wolfen Artist of Hetalia, im-not-only-crazy,Anime C.P, iceytoshiro , Kurosake, **For reviewing :D**

**WELCOME TO THE MADNESS**: Phobiakat, Nerdygal-lol, Anime C.P, PsychoticInsomniac, Kurosake,

**psychoB:** It's alright! I know the frustrations of having a mobile device. I had to make a separate account actually, because it wouldn't let me log into this one on my color.  
AND ALL THE FEELS  
ALL OF THEM

**ThaneOfStorm**: Apparently I'm an expert at playing with emotions, according to my friends ((psh, I mean, the five other people I actually talk to)) I had one of them read my story and now they stare at me weird when I say something evil. I wonder why? XD But I'm glad you like me :D

**Oh, and I just noticed that I made Sollux's dad lisp in certain parts, I kinda formulated the thought that his dad only lisps when worried. Other times he's alright, where Sollux DOESN'T"T lisp when he's worried. Mituna is...Mituna. It depends whether or not I make him have a larger part in this story whether or not his speech is affected.**

**I will see you at the bottom of the page /:]**

* * *

I stare blankly ahead of me as her voice registers in my head, and I'm able to get up the energy and courage to speak.

"Mom?"

I can hear the smile in her voice as she begins talking, and Nepeta is talking behind her, obviously trying to say something to me, and being diverted by my mother.

"Hi Karkat, I know that you're at Sollux's house and that you're being taken care of, so I'm not worrying about you. His dad is letting you stay there until we have things sorted out here, and I am trying to sort them out dear, you know how your dad can get sometimes. Don't worry about us though, alright?" She pauses to take a breathe, and I can make out the words Nepeta is yelling to me.

"Karkitty! Make sure to pick me up in the morning ok! Sollux can come to!" she shouts. I attempt to hold back laughter at this, hearing my mom doing the same. But I nod into the phone.

"Alright Catnep, I'll do that," I say somewhat loudly. She lets out a happy squeal and retreats from the phone, and I can hear my mom chuckle in the background. SIlence falls until my mom speaks up again.

"Well, just thought...I'd inform you," My mom says awkwardly, then goes silent. I realize how awkward it is to talk to her at the moment and gain a similar attitude.

"Um...thanks..." I mutter, glancing at Sollux who was staring at me in concern. I smile at him reassuringly, then turn back to the front.

"So, bye?"

"Bye," My mom replies, a smile still evident in her voice.

I hang up and hand the phone to Sollux, then crawl onto his bed, all the way to the corner where two walls meet, and curl my knees up to my chest. Wrapping my arms around them, I ignore the dull pain running through me and bury my head in my knees. I can hear Sollux moving across the room, but I ignore him as well, until he climbs on top of the bed with me.

"Go away fuckass," I mutter, curling tighter. He doesn't move, or say anything, but I feel him place a hand on my shoulder.

"It'th alright, i'th'n't it KK?" he lisps, moving to sit beside me. I nod, still not looking up at him. Everything was fine, no one was hurt, but for some reason I wasn't happy.

"Then you th'ouldn't be worrying," Sollux continues, moving an arm around my shoulders and tugging me closer to him. I fight my blush back and move to glare at him.

"But it's still a problem, everything's a problem..." I begin to yell, then trail off into a mumble, returning to my curled up position. I can hear Sollux sigh, but he makes no indication from moving, so the two of us sit there in silence, until Sollux's computer makes a small ping! sound. He reluctantly gets up and goes to sit in front of the screen, opening the chat client and beginning to respond to the person chatting with him.

"Hey, it'th GZ and he want'th to know "where the motherfuck" we both are," he yells over to me. I groan and slowly move to look behind him. Gamzee had apparently attempted contacting Sollux many time throughout the day, which I found quite funny. I began to snicker before I realized that I would probably have even more messages waiting for me if I dared to check.

"Augh, alright, tell him we're fucking here, he won't shut up otherwise," I groan, staring over his shoulder.

TC: WhY aReN't YoU iN sChOoL tHoUgH  
TC: dId yOu aLl Up AnD gEt YoUr SkIp On?

Sollux looks up at me questioningly, and I mutter some curses under my breath before shoving him over and replying.

TA: FUCK NO  
TA: FAMILY ISSUES ALRIGHT  
TA: IM CRASHING AT SOLLUX'S

I smirk at Sollux as I use my typing quirk. He scowls at me in response, but can't protest because Gamzee answers back.

TC: WeLl MoThErfUcK i'M sOrRy KaRbRo :O(  
TC: BuT aT lEaSt YoU gOt A pLaCe To StAy :O)  
TC: So I'm AsKiNg AbOuT tHe PrOjEcT  
TA: WHAT ABOUT IT?

I frown as I look at my wrist, it's mostly just sore, but I don't know how well I'd be able to play with it. While I'm distracted, Sollux reclaims the keyboard and messages back Gamzee.

TC: wHeN aRe We GoInG tO wOrK oN iT tOgEtHeR :O)  
TA: well, the two of u2 are ju2t 2iittiing here doiing nothiing 2o ii dont know  
TA: ii'll bee back at 2chool twomorrow probably 2o we can talk more then  
TA: ii don't know about kk  
TC: wElL mE aNd TaVbRo ArE gEtTiNg OuR tAlK oN aBoUt iT  
TC: bUt We WeRe WoNdErInG wHeRe ThE tWo Of YoU wErE  
TA: well we're here 2o yoU DON'T NEED TO FUCKING WORRY

I intercept Sollux's response with a mocking grin and hit reply, laughing at his shouts of protest.

TC: aLrIgHt BrO  
TC: TaLk To YoU lAtEr ThEn :O)

[terminallyCapricious has left the chat]

I turn to Sollux with a sigh and move away from the computer.

"Damn, I haven't even though about it that much," I mutter, stretching my arms above my head with a sigh. Sollux moves away from the computer as well, leaving the client running.

"Do you even think you can play with your writht like that?" he inquires, gesturing at said wrapped wrist. I shrug and turn to look at his guitar, which had been sitting in the corner of his room. I grab it and move over to the bed, sitting cross-legged with is resting on my knees. With a frown I try to position my wrist in a way that doesn't hurt like hell, and halfway succeed.

"...kinda," I murmur, sliding my hand to a chord with a slight flinch. It wasn't terrible painful, so I attempted to play a set of chords. "Ok, yeah, it's pretty ok, " I say, playing the first set of chords to Don't Forget.

"Ok, well then go ahead and teach me the chord'th oh great and powerful ma'th'ter," he says mockingly, bowing slightly. That same smirk is on his face, until I throw his own pillow at him. He quickly grabs it though, and throws it toward me. With my mediocre hand-eye coordination, I'm barely able to bat it out of the air before it hits me. Instead I toss him the guitar and stomp over to the computer, finding the site that I used for the chords.

I move out of the way and point at the screen. "Play that," I command.

He snickers and closely examines the screen, mouthing words as he places his fingers on the strings. Then he looks up at me as he plays them, a victorious smile aimed at me. I grumble under my breath before nodding.

"Congratul-fucking-ations, you can now fucking play a majority of the song, I'm applauding you for it," I reply, sneering at him.

"KK, th'ing for me," he laughs jokingly in response to my sneer. I blush and quickly shake my head in denial, but he begins to counter my embarrassment on the matter with logic. After awhile of blatantly refusing, I see that neither of us are going to give in anytime soon, so I huff in anger and move to sit on the bed beside him.

"I fucking hate you," I mutter, listening to him randomly strum some chords before beginning. I quietly start to sing along with his playing, until he fumbles a bit. I sing louder to hide his mistake, and the two of us continued. We were so into the song, that we didn't notice that Gamzee had attempted to message Sollux, or that Sollux's dad had come home from work.

"-Can i think of something, gotta think of something," I whispered, letting my words hang in the air before they were interrupted by quiet applause. The two of us turned quickly to see Sollux's dad leaning against the doorway with an impressed expression. I blush and move behind Sollux, although the taller teen was just as embarrassed as he was.

"Dad! how long have you been watching uth?!" He asks ,flustered.

"Long enough," his dad chuckles, "You've got a nice voice kid," he comments to me, causing me to blush and further conceal myself. He seems amused by my shyness as he further walks into the room.

"So is that for something?" He asks, standing in front of the two of us.

"Yeah, a thcool project," Sollux answers, completely normal now. I snort at his normalcy, continuing to hide my face from view.

"Nice, beginning of the year projects are always fun aren't they, but you'll do fine, especially if this is the song you're doing."

"Well, thankth I gueth, but you can leave now," Sollux replies quickly. His dad shrugs and leaves, not before flicking a smile at me though. He quietly shuts the door behind him as he leaves; the two of us let out a realieved sigh.

"Damn I hate it when people sneak up on me," i mutter, finally detaching myself from Sollux's side to move to the computer. I see that Gamzee and Tavros had attempted to message Sollux, so I decied to answer the two of them while Sollux distracts himself with figuring out the chords.

AT: i, uH, fIGURED OUT THE FIRST PART OF THE SONG WITH GAMZEE  
AT: hE GOT SOME OF THE, uH, bASE PART AS WELL  
TC: YeAh We MoThErFuCkINg GoT tHiS sHIt :O)  
TA: HOW NICE FOR THE TWO OF YOU  
TA: THE LISPY ASSHOLE I'M CURRENTLY WITH HAS JUST FIGURED OUT THE MAJORITY OF THE GUITAR PART  
TA: SO WE'VE BASICALLY GOT THIS WHOLE SHEBANG FIGURED OUT DON'T WE

I turn away form the computer and prepare to stand before I realize that Sollux had been standing behind me. I run into him and start to fall backwards before he catches my wrist. I let out a small yelp as he does so, trying to regain my balance.

"WHAT THE FUCK! WARN ME YOU ASSHOLE!" I shout, shoving him back and jerking my hand out of his grip. He stares at me for a few seconds before laughing slightly.

"Dude, you're th'o clum'thy, thith ith like the third time I've caught you today," he smirks, releasing me. I glare at him before moving back to the bed. I didn't feel like chatting with the two of them anymore, I'll let Sollux deal with them. I look at the clock. It was already around seven, meaning we had fucked around for about four hours. Well that was completely decent.

I sigh and run my fingers through my hair, beginning to feel tired again. Today was emotionally exhausting if nothing else. I lay down on the matress and stare up at the ceiling blankly, memorizing the way it had been painted. Before long I felt my eyelids become heavier, and I drifted off into sleep.

((Sollux POV))

After Karkat went over to my bed, I sat down and continued the chat with Gamzee and Tavros, although we didn't really talk about much, they mostly tried to get to know me better, which I didn't really care.

It was about an hour later, when my dad knocked on my door to tell me that dinner was ready, that I looked back at Karkat. I stared for a few seconds until I realized that he was asleep, with his arms wrapped around the pillow he had thrown at me. An unexpected pang went through my chest at this, and I shook it off, standing to walk over to him. He barely stirred, even when I gently shook his shoulder. With a slight smile and a sigh, I left him there, quietly exiting my room to go to the kitchen. My dad gave me a questioning glance when I left my room alone.

"He'th athleep," I say as I spoon out some rice onto my plate, along with some stir fried vegetables. I can see him nod, but he doesn't say anything. I retreat to the living room and begin watching some random cooking show as I ate my food, since I didn't really want to disturb Karkat. Although, he seemed to be sleeping pretty soundly. I flicked away those thoughts and quickly finished eating.

"Thanks dad," I yell to him, then go to my room once more . As predicted, Karkat is still asleep, so I go over to my computer and open up the code I had been working on for hte past week or so. I'm able to immerse myself in coding for another few hours or so, and by the time I look up from the screen, my back is stiff and it's really dark outside. I rub my eyes, since I didn't have my glasses on and retreat to the floor beside my bed.

Since I could actually think, I grabbed some old blankets from my closet and laid them on the floor to make a sort of pallet, then I grabbed an extra pillow as well. I sigh happily and soon drift into unconsciousness.

I wasn't sure what time it was when I woke up, but I had only been sleeping for a few hours. At first I was disoriented and confused to why I had even woken up in the first place, the I heard a scared whimper from above me. Lifting myself up on my forearms, I see that Karkat is virtually in the same position as when I had fallen asleep, but now he was clutching the pillow in fear. I frown and sit all the way up, moving so that I could see him more clearly.

He was still asleep, so that meant he was having a nightmare. I stand fully, wincing as my back popped, and sit on the edge of the bed. I shake his shoulder gently, trying to stay awake while doing so.

"KK," I murmur, trying not to fall on top of him. He's fallen silent, but I can tell he's still dreaming due to the way he keeps trying to twitch out of my hold. I give up on waking him, he seemed to be a really deep sleeper. Similarly to last night, I simply laid down next to him, keeping my hand on his shoulder. It wasn't long before I fell asleep once again.

* * *

/**Authors Note/**

**I fucking hate Gamzee's quirk oh my god -_-" Typing it is such a bitch. But I persevered and made this chapter as long as I could! Yeah, I know it still isn't that long, but blargh. I've been on here for 4 hours :P**

**But yeah, here's this :P**

**Hope you guys enjoyed it, and I'll hopefully be able to post quicker next week!**


	12. Don't You Dare Forget The Sun,Love

**/Authors Note/**

**YOU KNOW WHY I SUDDENLY GOT MY SHIT TOGETHER AND UPDATED MY STORY?**  
**TWO WORDS.**  
**FUCKING. HUSSIE. **  
**THAT IS WHY.**  
**FUCK. EVERYTHING GODDAMN I KNOW SHITS SUPPOSED TO BE OK BUT FRANKLY I'M STILL FLIPPING MY SHIT ABOUT IT. **  
**IF you haven't read the update...GO. IGNORE THIS AND READ IT.**

**As always, thanks to:** Captainforkz, Leopardtail, solkar2692, Death by Violet, sayaingirl21 Obsessivefangirl03,Kaycee Columbell iceytoshiro, Kurukecleon, im-not-only-crazy ,Scetchbook123 , For reviewing

**Welcome to the madness**: superactive sloth, twoRooks, PuppyKatGirl, dragon77888, ThaneOfStorm, cat-pancake-13, im-not-only-crazy

**ThaneOfStorm**: Glad you liked all the fluffiness I included! :D And I only updated today-that day- cause I thought "hey, maybe you guys need a happy Monday!" but you're welcome :)

**psychoB:** glad you liked the fluff as well! ((glad to know I'm doing well with the fluff, I got a little worried there)) And yes, after I posted it I read and saw that I had made that mistake, but sadly I'm such a lazy asshole that I'm not going to fix it :P

**Sollux Captor**: Sup Sollux, welcome to the madness, glad you liked it! And I'll make sure to remember that debt (whatever dept it is) mark my words ;] ((thanks for reviewing to my other stories as well...sorry for the sadstuck in Tears Won't Fall, but yeah...))

**Guest:** Yeah, I know it took me fucking long enough, but hey! Have some fluff! Hopefully I'll update sooner X3

**So now that that's done with...**

**I made a terrible attempt at Mituna. BLARGHEDARG. Only certain dancestors will be involved, well...they're all more of a side note than anything. But not all of them will be there. BECAUSE! ((haha I just thought of a logical reason!)) Think about it, the kids that will be in class with Nepeta won't really be a big part in the story, so there's even lesser a chance that their dancestors will need to be involved. SO TAH-FUCKING-DAH! **

**Yeah, so basically, these are the dancestors being the *most* involved : Mituna, Kurloz, Meulin((because Kurloz can't be alone)) Latula ((Because of Mituna)), and *POSSIBLY* Kankri. *P.O.S.S.I.B.A.L.L.Y.* But if Kankri is there then it's most likely that Cronus will be too and BLAHBLAHBLAHSTOPTALKINGLEVYYOUWILLTRYTOINCORPERATE CHARACTERSLALALALALALALALALA**  
**Ok, so the list *might* change but that's basically it for now. *edit* Rufioh will be slightly involved, but you shall see why when you read.**

** See you guys at the bottom of the page!**

* * *

I woke up once again pressed against someones chest. With a short gasp and a growl I pushed Sollux away roughly and sat up, looking at the clock. It was around six a.m., shockingly. I barely remembered when I had fallen asleep. Sollux was still sleeping, although in the darkness of his room I could barely tell. I rub my hand over my face with a small sigh, it's honestly been awhile since I slept so long, I must've fallen asleep around seven that night.

Looking around the darkness of his room, I wonder why Sollux was sleeping on the bed again, because I could just barely make out the form of blankets on the floor, along with a pillow. I guess I would ask him once he woke up.

A sudden loud beeping sound makes me jump slightly with a high pitched yelp. It took a moment before I realized it was just his alarm clock going off, and now the lispy teen was tiredly moving his arm to slam on the snooze. He mumbles something into his pillow before turning on the lamp. I squint at the sudden brightness, but then look closely at Sollux, who was now sitting up and rubbing at his face, searching for his glasses on the table.

"Mornin' KK," He slurs, conscious enough to see that I was sitting up and glaring at him.

"Yes, morning, may I ask why I found you sleeping next to me for the second night in a row?" I ask in a questioning, but quite pissed off, tone. He looks at me, confused, before it clicks and his eyes widen, holding his shades in his hand.

"You were having a nightmare, and thinthe you wouldn't wake up the only way that would calm you down wath to...yeah," He trails off, rubbing the back of his neck and keeping his gaze on the bedsheets.

"Oh..." Is all I can say as I think back to last night. I had been having a nightmare...it was about my dad.

"...what wath it about?"

I jerk my gaze up to meet his, bi-colored eyes meeting red ones.

"My dad...but it's not exactly that, don't worry yourself over it alright? It's not that big of a deal," I let out a nervous chuckle and avert my gaze, pointedly looking anywhere but him. Before he could respond though, there was a knock on his door before it was open.

"I hope your ass is out of bed-" his dad begins to say before he realizes that Sollux and I were sitting on top the bed, "Ok, nice to see you both awake, are you going to school today?" He asks me, eyebrow raised.

I nod, I did say that I would pick up Nepeta and what's the point of picking her up without going to my own hellhole of a school. Sollux's dad nods at before leaving, keeping the door open.

"You really want to go to thcool?" Sollux asks incredulously, climbing off the bed and motioning for me to follow him out to the kitchen. I shrug in response and follow, watching as he grabs some cereal and milk. He hands me the bowls and makes me fetch the spoons.

"Well, I promised Catnep that I would take and pick her up from school, so I might as well go to school anyway since it;s so close," I reply with a shrug, pouring my cereal and taking a bite. He contemplates the situation before deciding that it was quite smart.

"Alright then, what time do we need to leave," He mumbles through a mouthful of cereal.

"Eight something," I reply instantaneously, putting my dishes in the sink before retreating to Sollux's bedroom once more. I frowned when I realized I didn't have my bag or phone that I needed to grab, so that sort of messed with my mind, so I awkwardly sat on the edge of the bed.

He follows me in, then looks over slightly. "Are you really ok with going to school with your face bruised like that?"

I frown when I realize my face probably would be pretty badly bruised, but it wasn't like I hadn't done it before. I shrug slightly and look down at my splinted wrist. It doesn't really hurt anymore, so I undo the splint and lay it next to me .

Sollux is changing into fresh clothes across the room so I keep my gaze on my hands, pretending to be fascinated with the way my wrist rotates. When he finishes he walks over to me.

"Are you jutht going to wear that?" He asks, his tone obviously indicated that he didn't cared whether I did or not. I nodded, looking up at him. He opened his mouth to say something before someone interrupted him.

His door was slammed open and I turned to see what I assumed was Sollux's brother walk in (more like storm in) although it seemed like he was just really enthusiastic about something.

"Hey SOLLUX! KURLOZ, Latula, and Meulin are coming over to VISIT!-" He yells, his voice slightly garbled and fluctuating. He was going going to yell more before he looked over at me, although I couldn't really tell if he was actually looking at me because his top half of his face was covered with a mess of caramel brown hair.

"Vantas?" He asks in a shocked tone. He looks at Sollux then back at me. I stare wide-eyed at him before he frowns and twitches slightly.

"No...you're not him, why d'you look like him though?" He asks me, asking me as if I would know.

"uh, my name's Vantas, but I have no idea who you're talking about," I state, watching him carefully. His head tilts to the side before he heads out the room again, going into the room next to Sollux's. I turn to Sollux, but he looks just as confused as I did.

When he returns, he shoves a picture at me, which I took and examined.

It must've been at an outing, because there were quite a few of them. The first figure I saw was someone wearing clown makeup, making my thoughts flick to Gamzee before continuing to pick out the characters. There was two girls who reminded me of Vriska and Aradia, plus the two of them seemed to be yelling at each other quite intensely. then some guy that looked oddly like Tavros. Some others looked vaguely familiar. I could swear I saw two people looking suspiciously like Roxy and Dirk in the background, along with my English teacher Mr. Jake English.

My eyes finally flicked to Mituna, and my eyebrows creased in curiosity as I saw a teenager ((at the time)) that had the exact same features as me, the only exception was that he was an albino, his white hair a stark difference to the more darker shades around him. His expression was one of indifference to everything, but at the same time ready to give you a lecture about the exact same subject at a moments notice. His eyes were the same color as mine, although only one was open, the other was closed, almost like a wink but I felt like it was more a default expression.

"What's his name?" I asked, glancing up at Mituna.

"Kankri!" He shouts enthusiastically, smiling widely, showing off strangely sharp teeth. The name sounds familiar, I just can't quite place it .

"I think he's a cousin, maybe... can't say I've met him though," I confirm, handing the photo back. Mituna looks almost sad before nodding and retreating to his room once more. Now he was gone I turn to Sollux.

"What the FUCK?" I exclaim, my voice going ridiculously high pitched at the end. He awkwardly at the ground before replying.

"Thorry about that KK, my brother can be a bit impulthive at timeth," He mutters quietly. I quirk an eyebrow at this, but decide not to question it as put on my shoes. Looking at the time, we could probably start heading out.

"You ready to go?" I ask, breaking the silence that had inadvertently built up between us. He glances up and nods with a slight smile.

"Bye dad! We're going to pick up KK'th thithter!" He shouts as we walk out the door. We hear a yell in response, so we take that as an ok and continue out the door. "Wait, KK how ith thith going to work, ith your thithter going to meet uth outhide the building or what?" Sollux asks. I frown as I realize I hadn't really thought about it. So I formulated a plan on the spot.

"Well, mom will most likely send her downstairs, if not outside, so you can go up to the building and get her while I wait about block away," I report, tapping my fingers in the air to reinforce my argument. Sollux holds back laughter at this motion and I turn to glare at him. I tell him exactly what he should do once we get a block away. We both fell silent again as we walked nearer and nearer to my home. I felt my self begin to subconsciously tense up, but that was reflex. i always felt uneasy when I went home.

Once we got a block away, I stopped and let Sollux continue, we had already discussed that he shouldn't look back to me, it would seem suspicious. I sat waiting in intent silence for what seemed like half an hour, but must've been a few minutes. By the time he came walking back I was prepared to bolt in the opposite direction if a leaf blew in front of my face.

The moment Nepeta saw me, she let out a high pitched squeal and sprinted forward, "tackle pouncing" me as she liked to call it. Holding back a wince I laughed and hugged her back, beginning to walk in the direction of school with her latched to my chest like a monkey.

"Hi Catnep," I greet, smiling at her. She giggles and pulls back to look me in the eye.

"Karkitty I was so worried!" Is the first thing she says, before she notices the dark bruises littering my face and she begins fussing over those. "Karkitty are you alright? Do they hurt? I'm sorry if I'm hurting you! Let me walk on my own," she says quickly, scrambling to the ground before I could protest. Although I was slightly glad to have her not gripping my bruised chest, I didn't want her to get down.

"I'm fine Nep, don't worry so much," I reassure over and over, but she just continued walking next to me. I seem to 'remember' Sollux is there too, but when I look over, he just adverts his gaze and I can visibly see him fighting down a blush. I glance at Nepeta and see her walking along as happy as can be. They were alone for a bit...

Connecting the dots, I begin to laugh, seeing Sollux look over and glare at me, Nepeta just giggles as well. We made it to her school rather quickly and I walk her up to the doors, hearing some girls calling her over. She giggles and waves at them before hugging me and whispering "I ship the two of you so much" before scurrying off to her friends. I stare at her back in shock for a few moments before I spin around and walk slowly back to Sollux.

The two of us are now in mutual awkward silence until we get to our school, where I'm immediately tackled by Gamzee.

"Bro! I'm so motherfuckin' glad you're here today! Me and Tavbro all up and missed you," The Juggalo exclaims, mock sobbing into Karkat's shoulder. The smaller teen stumbles under Gamzee's weight, but just ends up taking a short step back and shoving him away. Tavros chuckled from his position behind Gamzee, earning a small glare from Karkat.

"Jeez Gamz it's not like I fucking died then came back to life you shitstain," he growls at the clown. Gamzee just chuckles and steps away, not even fazed by the rather creative insult.

"Did the two of uth mith much," Sollux asks from behind me, walking forward and smiling at Tavros. He shakes his head at me.

"No, we didn't get any homework other than to work on out "creativity", so you virtually didn't miss out," He reports, gesturing at the building.

"Oh yeah, but me an' Tavbro worked on the song, the two of us sound awesome together," Gamzee says with a sideways grin. Tavros blushes slightly at this, but tries to hide it by saying, " We should probably head to our lockers, first bell is going to ring soon."

"Oh motherfuck', it is," Gamzee says, turning to grab my wrist and dragging me into the building.

"I can walk without you dragging me Gamzee!" I protest, jerking my wrist out of his grip and walking on my own beside him. I could feel him looking at me silently, but he never says anything about my face, he had gotten used to the bruises and learned not to ask about them.

Sollux and Tavros were walking behind us, and a sudden thought came to mind. The two of them were like Sidekicks to Gamzee and I. Unknowingly, I chuckled aloud, earning a sideways glance from Gamzee and a few strange looks from the people around us. Of course, I was already getting strange looks from my appearance, but I didn't particularly care about it.

Grabbing my belongings for Geometry, I told Tavros I'd see him later and headed to the classroom. Gamzee followed me, like i knew he would, and we met up with Sollux along the way. The three of us discussed the song, and I told Gamzee how much the two of us could play, which was basically the whole thing.

When we walked into the classroom we fell silent because Mrs. Lalonde was giving us a pointed look, saying without words that we were almost late. Quickly the three of us dodged muffled laughter and moved to the back of the room.

"Today class, we will be working on conjoining equations, which I'm sure you all already know how to do, but this shall just be a warm-up," She says, beginning to pass out papers, the ring on her finger catching my attention once more. Once I get the paper, I snort at how easy it looked. Yeah, we'd done this last year and it was one of the only things I was actually able to remember.

"If you don't finish the assignments they will be appointed as homework, otherwise you won't have any. We will go over these two papers tomorrow and your grade will be taken by completion as well as how well the problems are completed," she reports, handing back a second stack of papers.

Needless to say, that class went by rather quickly. She allowed us to work together if need be, so the three of us worked to complete the two papers quickly then we basically talked for the rest of the class.

Biology was pretty mediocre too, just John talking about frogs. He told us an interesting myth about how our universe is a frog and was made by breeding special frogs or some shit (I zoned out halfway through) but it was interesting. John seemed concerned for me though, he asked if I was alright, especially after looking at my face. I just shrugged, I didn't hurt anymore so someone could say I was alright.

Gym was ok too, Dave didn't care what we did all day and ended up texting on his phone. Me and Tavros discussed our project, Josh didn't bother us so everything was alright. Although there was an odd moment when Dave asked if I was alright as well, to which I nodded and gave him a strange look.

I went to lunch even though I didn't have money, but Gamzee ended up making me eat half of his sandwich, so I wasn't completely starving.

Once we got to Arts class though, I was enthusiastically greeted by Jade.

"Karkat glad to see you today! You know everyone missed you yesterday," she says with a large grin. I smile slightly at her, trying not to scowl at her overly happiness. I was saved by her having to start class, so I moved to our table, where Sollux nodded at me and Roxy ignored reality, and Gamzee wanted to hug me but couldn't because then he would interrupt Jade.

"'K guys! Today I'll let you work in your groups on the project, I'm expecting alot from you all! One group has already submitted their project," she glances over to us and winks, smiling broadly, "And I'll tell you right now that I hope you aren't planning to play a totally awesome song for us, 'cause that ideas taken!" Some audible groans and thunks of heads hitting tables were heard, but Jade just laughs and continues talking, "Ok, you guys can start planning now!"

Roxy seemed to snap back to reality for a moment and turned to look at us.

"Hi guys, so how are we doing on our project?" She asks, leaning her chin on her hands and looking at us. Sollux is the first to reply.

"Well me and KK have got the guitar part figured out, tho we're good," He turns to Tavros who continues.

"Me and uh, Gamzee have the first half of it figured out," He states quietly, turning back to Roxy.

"Well, I got a good majority of it figured out. So what are we supposed to do now?" She asks, turning to me. The others turn to look at me as well, making me slouch slightly in my chair.

"What're you looking at me for!" I shout indignantly, looking at their questioning glances.

"Cause you're our motherfuckin' leader Karbro!" Gamzee exclaims proudly, giving me a lopsided grin.

"Yeah, you made the dethithion for the th'ong tho you thould lead uth and thtuff," Sollux says, backing up Gamzee's proclamation.

I groan and rub at my face for a moment before replying, "Fine want to hear what I think we should do? We should probably play what we can tgether and figure out if we sound like absolute shit, or if we might have it playable in two weeks," I say, glaring at them slightly.

"Sounds good," Roxy says, smiling at me. I just growl at her.

"So uh, where should we meet up to play together," Tavros asks, nervously looking down at the table.

"Your house, duh, your drums are there," I reply instantly, "Sollux and I can just carry his guitar there, and Gamzee's bass is already there, Roxy is just going to be singing so that's the only logical plan of action."

"Thoundth good, that will actually work out thinthe Mituna ith bringing hith crathy friendth over to my houthe," Sollux says with a lopsided smile and a shudder.

"Oh, ok then , I'll have to tell my uncle though, but he most likely won't mind," Tavros says with a small smile. Now that we figured out what we were doing, we just sat there in awkward silence and listened to the other teams argue about what they wanted to do.

After Arts, English and World History was equally boring, although I had small assignments from each of them , I completed them quickly. Once school ended I met up with SOllux at the front once more, and the two of us headed to pick up Nepeta.

I was early this time, when I walked up to her, she gave me a slightly disapproving look.

"Karkitty you're three minutes early! I'm still playing with my friends!" She says with a pout. I chuckle and back off, keeping my hands in the air in a 'don't shoot me' manner.

"Sorry Katnep, continue to play with your friends," I laugh, beginning to walk away. Before I could though, she grabbed my hand.

"Wait wait! I want to introduce you!" SHe exclaims, pulling me toward her. "This is my older brother Karkat! Karkat this is Feferi," she points to a tall girl with really poofy dark brown hair. Her skin was rather dark as well, almost like she spent every living moment in the sun. Her chocolatey brown eyes sparkled as she grinned at me, dark brown freckles were sprinkled across her nose. Atop her head was a pair of fuchsia goggles.

"Hi! It's EXITING to meet you!" She says happily, reaching out my hand for me to shake it. I'm sort of shocked by her mix of maturity and non maturity, but I smile and shaker her hand.

"Nice to meet you to Feferi."

"This is Terezi!"

A girl with extremely light gray eyes without pupils grins at me. Her fiery red hair is cut short and choppy. Red seemed like her favorite color because there was a piece of it in every part of her outfit.

She grabs my hand and licks it, then grins at me wider. "I'm going to call you Karkles!" She proclaims. I stare at her for a few moments before Nepeta explains.

"She's blind and remembers who you are by taste and smell, now she'll never forget you!" Without skipping a beat she points to a pouting but fashionably dressed boy. "That's Eridan."

The boy just glares at me lightly so I glare back.

"Hi," he growls.

"Hi to you too," I retort. Before he could say much else, Mrs. Mrs Aradia walks out to the front and claps her hands, silencing us.

"School is now dismissed, please wait for your guardians to pick you up here at the front," she says pleasantly, then moves to the side so that she could let the other teachers out and still watch the kids.

"Alright Katnep, time to go, it was nice to meet your friends," I say with a smile at her friends. They all smile back at me (excluding Eridan) and Nepeta allows me to grab her hand and guide her over to where Sollux was waiting.

I sigh and begin walking, Nepeta begins to relay all of her happenings at school that day, and I just smile at her, SOllux was the one who mostly kept up the conversation. I as lost in my own thoughts,., But the one thing I continued to say was:

At least we're all ok.

* * *

**/Authors Note/**

**Wow really sucky ending there Levy, couldn't find anything else to say?**

**NOPE**

**Well, here you guys go, I hope you're happy about this after Hussies update. I know there's not much fluff etc., but it was the best I could come up with XP**

**I'll have fun with next chapter though, I know that much :)**

**So, hope you guys liked it and I will see you all next chapter!**

**Disclaimer~ I own nothing in this story other than the plot~**


	13. Cold,WhiteWallsKeepYouFromYour PadandPen

/**Authors Note/**

**I have a favor to ask of you guys, I really want to add a cover art for my story (Yes I have drawn my own, but it's hand drawn and my camera sucks so I seriously can't upload it -_-") And I'm having a hard time finding the perfect coverart. I found some pretty good ones, but they don't really fit my story, and most of them are in troll format...**  
**If you guys have any awesome human!stuck coverart that you'd like to recommend to me, I'd love to look at it! Keep in mind that Sollux has sandy brown hair, and that Karkat has dark brown hair (because the appearances of them is what's so hard for me to find) **

**So as always, thank you to:** ThaneOfStorm, Kaycee Columbell, KuruKecleon, im-not-only-crazy, Obsessivefangirl03, **For Reviewing**

**Welcome to the madness:** I am awesome Prussia, chibiromano22, italysbabe, sydni the sarcastic, YEAHYAKATO, asdasdsdfsdf

**psychoB**: heheh, I suppose it would be fun to have the Vantas's...meet...OH COD YES! I"VE GOT AN IDEA! Alright, thanks, but don't worry, you'll have your Vantas meet-up ;)

***warning* Terrible attempt at the Dancestors ahead *you have been warned***

**Just saying, in the 4th paragraph down, I didn't make Sollux lisp at all because I thought it would be to hard to read, since the paragraph pretty long. Just warning you guys so you won't be confused ^^ .**

**I hope you guys enjoy the chapter and I will see you at the bottom of the page :)**

* * *

"I'll see you tomorrow Catnep, love you," I say as i hug the small girl. She latches her arms around my neck, and reluctantly releases me after a few seconds.

"Ok, Karkitty, love you too! Bye!" She says happily, grabbing Sollux's hand as he leads her down the sidewalk. I sigh and lean back against the wall of the building near me. I didn't really want to think about anything, so I just watched a bird hop around across the street, until Sollux quietly walked back and scared me.

"KK, you ready to leave?" He asks with an amused smile at my jumpiness. I glare at him lightly and nod, wordlessly walking away. After a few minutes of silence, i decide to voice something that had been nagging at my mind.

"Sollux, Why did your brother think I was my cousin?" I ask quietly, looking sideways at the taller teen. He sighs and slows his walking, keeping his gaze on the ground.

"We've moved alot and he doesn't like change that much, a few years back we were living in a town not that far from here, and he made friends there. The picture he showed you was where he met them. One of his best friends was Kankri, apparently your cousin. I don't exactly know why he freaked out like that...it happens sometimes." He trails off, looking at me before continuing. "He's often impulsive because we left that town. He used to be calmer and more rational about things. He liked that town the best, but my dad made him move again with us, because he had been only 17 at the time. He and my dad had a huge yelling match and when he lashed out, his arm hit the wall. At the time we had a picture hanging up and the glass in the frame somehow shattered and really messed up his face."

I stare shocked for a few seconds, before glancing at the ground as well. That would explain why he kept his face covered by his hair.

"Wow..." I murmur.

"Yep, and tahdah that'th why my brother freaked the fuck out when he looked at you," He says sort of bitterly.

"It's alright, don't be so worked up about it," I say uncomfortably, not really sure how to comfort him. Before he could answer, the both of us looked up to see we had walked home without realizing it.

"Well, let'th not worry about it, hopefully we can get our thtuff and get out before hith friendth get here," He states with a lopsided smile, opening the door and quickly walking inside, me staying close on his heels.

Before we could get there, a loud voice yells, "Oh my god there you are mini-Captor!" And Sollux is practically tackled to the ground by a somewhat tall red-headed girl. I have to clamp a hand over my mouth to keep from laughing aloud as Sollux mutters angrily under his breath and reluctantly hugs her back.

"Nithe to thee you Latula, it'th been awhile," He says spitefully, pushing her away after a few seconds. The girl just laughs loudly, looking up at him.

"You got taller, how rad! It's nice seein' my boyfriends little bro!" She laughs, finally turning to look at me. "Whoa shit it's a mini-Vantas too!" She says in shock, pushing past Sollux to grip my shoulders. I give Sollux a "Help ME" look, but he just smirks and mouths "you didn't help me".

"What's your name kid?" She asks after releasing me. I rub my shoulders, glaring at her.

"Karkat," I mutter, trying to place why she looked so familiar. Her red glasses gleam slightly as she grins widely at me.

"You're a cousin! He used to talk about you sometimes," She proclaims, backing away a bit, "You're not going to lecture me are you? I need my ears today," She jokes, putting her hands over her ears.  
Mituna walks quietly up behind her, tackling her in a hug. "Yeth, please don't talk her ears off mini-Vantas," He says to me, smiling. Sollux rubs at his hair and glares at Mituna.

"He really doethn't talk much 'Tuna," He grumbles, then grabs my wrist and drags me to his room. Of course "Latula" Mituna follow us.

"Where are you going Sollux?" Mituna asks, running up behind him only to trip and knock them both to the ground. Latula and I start to laugh as Sollux annoyingly pushes his brother off him and huffs as he puts his guitar in his case.

"Karkat and I are going to a friendth houthe to work on that project due in a couple of weeks," He says with an angry huff of breath. I chuckle and smile at him slightly.

"Don't get so worked up Sollux," I say between laughs.

"Yeah Sollux, but that sounds rad, why do you need your guitar though?" Latula asks, curiously watching the two of us.

"It's a project on creativity," I answer for him, "My friends and I, including him, are playing a song." She begins to look interested, staring at me with wide light-gray eyes.

"Oh that's awesome! What song are ya' playin?"

"Why are you tho interethted?" Sollux retorts, walking past her to motion me to follow once more. But of course the two of them began to follow us.

"Because your life is interesting, duh!" Latula smiles, slinging an arm around Sollux's shoulders. "Where is this friend, I can drive you if you want!"

"Oh hell no!" Sollux yelps, twisting out of Latula's grip, "I don't trust you behind the wheel!" I chuckle at this and follow him out the door, with Mituna and Latula close at our heels.

"Oh fine, geez, how about you drive and I'll stay in the backseat, because I don't trust you with my truck," She says instead, darting to the driveway where I see an old red truck parked there. Wonder how I didn't notice it before...

"If you'll leave uth alone after thith then fine, I'll drive, c'mon Karkat," He barks, catching the keys that were thrown at him and opening up the door. I claimed the shotgun seat and our two tag-alongs jumped into the back.

"I'm gonna tell Tavros that we'll be there in a few minutes," I tell Sollux as I grab his phone from his pocket. He nods in response and just focuses on the road.

[twinArmageddons has messaged adiosToreador]  
TA: HEY, SOLLUX IS DRIVING  
TA: SO WE'LL BE THERE IN ONLY A FEW MINUTES  
AT: aLRIGHT KARKAT  
AT: gAMZEE IS ALREADY HERE, bUT, uH, rOXY HASN'T SHOWN YET  
TA: I'LL MESSAGE HER THEN

"Hey, Roxy isn't there yet, but Gamzee is," I mumble to Sollux as I begin to message the teen.

"Unthurprithing, th'eth an interethting character," He replies with a laugh.

[twinArmageddons has messaged tipsyGnostalgic]  
TA: HEY WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU  
TA: YOU BETTER BE SOMEWHAT CLOSE TO TAVROS'S HOUSE  
TA: BECAUSE ME AND SOLLUX ARE ALMOST THERE  
TG: I'm almots theer karat  
TG: *karkat  
TG: geez caml donw  
[ tipsyGnostalgic has ceased chatting with twinArmageddons ]

"Ok, she's on her way so we're good." I state, looking up to see him pull into Tavros's driveway. Gamzee and Tavros were standing out front watching for us.

"Hey Solbro! Karbro! Glad ta' see ya'," Gamzee says happily, giving me a hug and lifting me off the ground. I yelp and struggle out of his grasp.

"Gamzee! You saw us not that long ago at school! Jesus fuck put me down!"

He just laughs and looks back at Latula and Mituna, who where climbing out of the truck.

"Whoa, who the motherfuck are they?" He asks me in confusion.

"My brother and hith girlfriend, I used her truck to drive here," Sollux replies, turning to them. "You guyth can go home now," He says impatiently.

"Oh but mini-Captor, what if I want to say hi to your friends," Latula teases, poking the taller boys' cheek.

"Then thay Hi and leave, thimple," He mutters. Gamzee looks at him confused, but turns to the two of them.

"Motherfucking Hi," He greets, waving at them with a dumb smile on his face.

"Uh, hi," Tavros says awkwardly, walking up behind Gamzee.

"Hi!" Mituna yells, grinning at them.

"You two seem familiar..." Latula states, tapping her chin with a painted red fingernail. "Nitram and Makara!" She yells victoriously, pointing at the two of them using the "rock on"" hand sign.

"Motherfuck? How do you all up and know our names?" Gamzee questions, looking at her curiously.

"Whoa really? That's your names?" She asks in shock, staring at the two of them with wide eyes.

"Yeah bitchtits, I'm Gamzee Makara, and this is my bro Tavros Nitram," He drawls, slinging an arm around Tavros's shoulders.

"Radical! You two remind me of our friends, Rufioh and Kurloz, speaking of Kurloz, he should be here soon with Meulin, we should tell him to come here instead!" Latula exclaims, whipping out her phone and rapidly texting.

"Latula! No! We need to work on our project and having you and your weird friendth here ithn't going to help!" Sollux protests, trying to get the phone out of her hands. She just laughs and easily keeps away from his grabby-hands as she finishes texting. Within a few seconds she gets a text in response and shouts in victory.

"Aw yeah! They're coming here instead, haha mini-Captor!" She taunts, waving her phone in front of his face.

"Don't tease him tho much 'Tula," Mituna giggles, patting the top of her head. She just laughs and gives him a peck on the lips before turning around and walking toward the road.

"They said they were fairly close, so it shouldn't take long.

"Uh hey, Roxy isn't here yet," Tavros mentions, causing me to growl and walk over to Sollux and grab his phone again.

"I'm calling Roxy," I growl at him, ignoring his sound of protest, then dial the number.

Click.

"Hey fuckass where are you," I spit, not even waiting for her to say hi.

"Calm down, Rose is driving me and we got caught in traffic, I'll be there in a few minutes," She calmly states.

"Ugh, fine dammit, but try to get here in a few minutes alright," I sigh, ending the call. I return Sollux's phone then a thought hits me. Rose, as in our teacher? I shrug it off when I see Roxy walking up the driveway. Yep, there's Rose, telling her to be careful before quickly driving off. Oh yeah, they were related weren't they.

"About damn time Roxy," I growl good-naturally at her. She shrugs in response.

"What can I say, traffic was a bitch."

"Well, uh now that we're all here, we can go practice," Tavros states, beginning to walk up toward his house. We all follow him inside, although Sollux stays with his brother for a few extra seconds before following.

"My brother and Latula are going to wait outthide for their friendth, ith that alright Tavroth?" He asks, looking at the taller teen, who shrugs.

"Uh sure, I'm sure my uncle won't mind." He leads us inside then walks down to the basement. I smile, having been there before, his basement was awesome. His uncle had alot of musical instruments. Plus most of them had amplifiers and there was a recording station. It's pretty sweet to say the least.

His uncle comes down the stairs, looking at us all before saying, "Don't be afraid to play loud, I already piss off the neighbors enough," With a wide smile. I chuckle and nod at him.

"Oh yeah, Sollux's brother and his girlfriend are out front waiting for some friends, you should go say hi!" Tavros shouts after him, hearing him shout a reply before the door opening and closing is heard. He looks at us nervously.

"So I guess just set up and stuff for the moment."

He goes to do stuff with his drums, since I don't know about drums I can't tell you what he does. I guide Sollux over to my favorite corner, grabbing his guitar out of the case and tuning it for him before searching for a pick.

"Oh Hey! Keyboard!" Roxy exclaims happily, walking over to the keyboard in the corner. She pulls it out and begins aimlessly playing a tune on it, humming something. I chuckle at her attention-span and turn back to Sollux. He had found the awesome electric guitars that Rufioh owned. He was quietly plucking at the strings and testing out the song he knew. he had the blue one, so I grabbed the red one and placed the strap behind my neck.

"Hey Tavros, I'm going to use this guitar alright," I say, already knowing he'll be ok with it. He nods with a small smile, turning to Gamzee to help him with his bass.

* * *

(Outside: 3rd Person POV)

"Hey, my nephew said I should come say-" Rufioh begins, then stops as he looks at the two before him.

"Latula! Doll it's been years!" He shouts happily, walking forward to hug her.

"Whoa no way Rufioh! Is little Nitram your nephew?!" She exclaims, giving him a quick hug before pulling back.

"Yeah doll! And Mituna! Did you move again?" He asks the man, smiling at him.

"Uh huh, but I might be able to move into my own place soon, I've been saving up," He grins.

"Nice, so who're you two waitin' on, Tavros said you were waitin' on friends."

"Kurloz and Meulin, Hey did you know that Gamzee kid is a Makara?" Latula answers, then looks at Rufioh questioningly.

"Oh yeah, I would know, Tavros and Gamzee've been been friends for years, and lately they've been actin' more than friends," He comments with a suggestive wink. Mituna giggles, but is distracted by a car door slamming. The three of them turn to see the tall clown and catlike girl climb out of their sleek black car. The two of them begin signing rapidly to the three of them, and knowing sign language they sign back.

((A/N: When they are talking using "these marks " they are actually signing at the same time to Kurloz and Meulin, because Kurloz is still mute and Meulin is still deaf, well Meulin can hear, but not very well))

Kurloz: Hello everyone, it's been way to long.  
He smiles at them, keeping his mouth closed. His light blue eyes look over all of them before returning to Meulin, who was signing quickly at them

Meulin: Oh my gosh I'm so glad to see you guys! It's been way to long!  
She's jumping up and down rather hyper-like as she runs around to give each other hugs.

"Good to see ya' doll!" Rufioh returns the hug and smiles at Kurloz. "Nice to see you to!"

Mituna and Kurloz exchange a hug, and Latula and Kurloz just nod at each other.

"It has been way to long, I've missed you guys so much!" Mituna says first, grinning happily at them, jumping on the balls of his feet.

Meulin: We need to get everyone to meet up ! I mean, EVERYONE, and it should be soon!  
She gestures wildly with her hands and grins to show her enthusiasm for the idea.

"That would be so radical! I mean, we already know you and Kurloz can get here, Cronus and Kanny still live near you two right?" A nod in response from Kurloz, "Then Megido, Peixes and Serket, Roxy is here, so Dirk is here as well, Zahhak, and Porrim we would have to find, but that should be simple!" Latula signs happily, counting off on her fingers.

Meulin: Yeah yeah! Zahhak actually works at a place not to far from here, a few hundred miles north or so! And Porrim is living with her sister near here, they own a fashion business, and her sister teaches nearby!

"Oh hey, I'm going to check on the kids, I'm supposed to watch them after all," Rufioh says/signs quickly, walking back to the house.

"We'll come too!" Latula says quickly, motioning for the others to follow her. She was also desperately trying to annoy Sollux in any way possible.

* * *

(Back to the basement)

"Ok, are we ready?" I ask, turning to the others. They were all set up and had their instruments in position. I was going to accompany Sollux with guitar in case he stumbled/messed up. I made sure all of us were hooked up to amplifiers, and that the microphones were working. And just for the heck of it, we were going to record ourselves.

I took a deep breath and looked Tavros, nodding at him before using the step pedal to create the echoey sound in the beginning. Letting him start off, Sollux, Gamzee and I effortlessly shot into the bridge in the beginning, and I stepped up to the mic closest to me, glancing at Roxy before beginning to sing.

"_You're a mess, tangled in you confidence, _  
_you think you haven't sinned, _  
_Well you're unstoppable, _  
_your walls are impassable, oh_  
_I think you're better off looking alone, _  
_if the boys that chase your hips could just go find their way home _  
_and at the end of the day, you think to yourself_  
_my body is a product being sold on a shelf_  
_Tell me I can change, _  
_tell me I can change_

_Well I know you lay in bed_  
_Contemplating your own death_  
_Well just look at what you've done_  
_Don't you dare forget the sun, Love"_

I begin to smile widely, Tavros was keeping the beat, Roxy was the perfect back up singer, Sollux was doing pretty well with his playing, and my voice hadn't cracked yet. Gamzee was amazing, I couldn't believe I'd never heard him play before.

_"Don't forget~"_

I take a deep breath before continuing, subconsciously crossing my fingers. The sound of the door opening caught my attention, but I ignored it and continued to sing.

_"Cold white walls, Keep you from your pad and pen_  
_you just wanna stab again, I can't believe its_  
_Half this hard,_  
_you never knew your mind was dark, no!_  
_I think you're better off lookin' alone, _  
_The boys that chase your hips can just go find their way home_  
_You can dig so deep for scars_  
_you never knew your mind was dark_  
_come on and breathe with me oh!_  
_Breathe with me ohhh!_

_Well I know you lay in bed_  
_Contemplating your own death_  
_Well just look at what you've done!_  
_Don't you dare forget the sun, Love!_  
_You look down on me so casually in everything, I know_  
_you look down on me, but not right on me_  
_Did I wreak this broken home?"_

I'm almost shocked we had made it this far through the song, there were only a few lines left now. Tavros had gotten a bit quieter in his unsureness, but it wasn't terribly bad. We had even kept up to speed with the actual song.

_"Dear Diary, life is trying me_  
_Can I get a sign?_  
_Or a two of mind, a piece of mind, _  
_oh, Can I get a sign? _  
_A sign_  
_Can I get a sign? _

_I know_

_Well I know you lay in bed_  
_contemplating your own death'_  
_Well just look at what you've done!_  
_Don't you dare forget the sun, Love!_  
_You look down on me so casually in everything I know_  
_You look down on me but not right on me_  
_ Is it plain to see that life is tryin' me?"_

I can't stop the grin from spreading over my face as I energetically strum the chords. When I glance over, everyone is smiling.

_"Life is trying me!_  
_Life is trying _  
_Can I think of something? Gotta think of something!"_

We all let the final notes echo before giving a victorious shout. We are interrupted by energetic clapping though, and we look up in shock to see Latula had dragged everyone onto the stairs and they had been watching us.

"Damn Vantas you have a voice! Now I'm curious to know if Kanny has a voice to," She exclaims with a lopsided grin, jumping down the majority of stairs to walk over to me and giving me a one armed hug.

"Yeah Karkat, you have a really nice voice, I'm surprised I didn't find out sooner," Rufioh smiles at me. Of course, I've only been to Tavros's house a few times and both times Rufioh left a few minutes after i arrived.

"Thanks I guess," I mutter, trying not to blush at the attention.

Kurloz: That was quite amazing playing, you are quite talented and so are your friends.  
He smiles slightly as he looks at me, but I only stare as his hands practically blur from signing so quickly.

"Oh, Kurloz is thaying "That was quite amathing playing, you are quite talented and tho are your friendth," Sollux says to me, watching Kurloz closely.

"Oh, uh thank you," I say even more awkwardly. The tall man just smiles and nods at me. His clown makeup was a tad bit more intricate than Gamzee's, and I caught myself comparing appearances between the two. I turn to Sollux, "You know sign language?"

He shrugs, "If I wanted to underthtand half of the converthationth Mituna and hith friends had, yeth I had to learn," He quickly signs something to a girl standing behind Kurloz, who beams at me and signs quickly in return.

"That'th Meulin, the'th deaf tho I'll thign to her for you," He reports, "Oh, she thayth "you are almotht the thpitting image of Kankri"."

"Oh, well I guess tell her "I get that alot, do I really look that much like him?"

"She thayth yeth, the only differenthe ith the hair, and the fact that you aren't talking," Sollux chuckles, then signs to her quickly. She laughs silently and signs in return.

Before Sollux can tell me what she says back I'm almost tackled by Gamzee.

"Wow Karbro I didn't motherfuckin' know your voice was that amazing, you're so awesome," He chuckles, hugging me tightly.

"Ugh, yeah fuckass, and I'll say that you're a badass base player now get the hell off my back," I retort, shoving him off my shoulders. He laughs a bit more and turns to Tavros.

"You did awesome too Tavros, I'm glad you were able to play the entire song," I say with a slight smile.

"Well uh, I sort of winged it, I'm glad it wasn't uh, bad," He says nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. I smile at him and turn to Roxy. I guess I just had to dish out the compliments didn't I.

"Hey Rox, good job, you didn't fuck up," I say jokingly. She laughs and tips her head to me.

"I'm glad Karkles," She giggles.

Turning to the elder people in the room, I see that Gamzee is now attempting to sign something to Kurloz. I laugh lightly a tthe sight, and earn some strange looks.

"Man you enven laugh like Kanny now that I think about it!" Latula exclaims, giving me wide eyed look. I frown slightly now, I was curious to meet with Kanki to see how alike we really were.

"hey, do you know a way to contact Kankri?" I ask in the most casual way possible.

"Well, I know where he lives, but most of the time he doesn't answer his phone, and don't ask me why because I don't know," Latula replies.

"oh..." I murmur, trying to hide the disappointment in my voice. She smiles and pats my shoulder.

"Hey don't worry, we were planning on having another meetup soon so all of us could see each other again, so you'll be able to see him if we make it happen," a wide grin is on her face as she turns to the others.

"Hey, we need to plan this meet-up!" She shouts and signs at the same time. The others yell/signs in agreement and they all follow Rufioh upstairs.

"Wow, ok that's really motherfuckin' strange," Gamzee mutters.

"How ith it thtrange GZ?" Sollux asks curiously.

"Well lets see Solbro, Tavros's uncle knows your older brother, who is also best friends with Karbro's cousin, and then my stepbrother knows them as well. IIsn't that a bit motherfuckin strange?" He asks, sounding intelligent for once.

"That.. ith really weird," Sollux frowns, looking over at me, then at Tavros.

"Yeah, uh, especially since we haven't personally known each other that long, besides me and uh Gamzee that is," Tavros stutters.

"Hm, come to think of it, Meulin sort of reminds me of Nepeta," I mutter, looking back on how the girl lit up when I turned to her. The happy expression on her face as she eagerly signs at me reminds me of how Nepeta would look when I would play with her.

"But...there's no way they can be related," I continue quickly, trying not to dwell on it to much.

"You never know Karkat, there's always the possibility," Roxy says with a shrug, walking past us and up the stairs, stopping halfway she yells, "Ros is picking me up so I have to leave, Bye guys!" Then she absconds the fuck out.

"heh, should we go back to my houthe Karkat, or are you ok with uth thtaying awhile Tavros?" Sollux asks, looking at the teen. He shrugs.

"Since your brother is here, and they're your ride and they're yours, I'm fine with you guys staying awile," He smiles kindly at us and runs up the stairs. When he returns, he reports, "Rufioh says it's fine because they're going to talk awhile, so..." He trails off.

"Come on Tavbro, let's play some video games, I know you've got a motherfucking badass game system," Gamzee says with a large grin on his face. He walks over to the other side of the basement and we all follow him into the "gaming" room. I'd only been there once,so I knew what to expect but even so I was in awe of the amount of gaming appliances in one small room.

Sollux lets out a strangled gasp, "Holy thit thith ith awethome! How the hell could you get tho many contholeth!" He gasps, examining the pieces with awe. Tavros chuckles.

"Rufioh likes games, and he likes to play alot, and he kept getting them so ta-dah! A ridiculous amount of systems." He chuckles as he walks over to the large flat-screen, turning it on and he motions to the large bin of games in the corner.

"Pick out a game and we can play it," He says, focusing on the TV. I watched Sollux and Gamzee run over to the bin and begin sorting through the games. Gamzee finds a game and throws it at Tavros, who expertly catches it.

"Oh god no Gamzee," I say in horror, watching as the Mario Brothers game is installed. "I fucking hate you," I groan as I pick out my controller and sit down in the corner of the room.

Needless to say, the next few hours were spent kicking each others asses at video games.

"AH SHIT JUMP YOU DUMBASS!" I shout to Sollux.

"FOR ME TO JUMP YOU HAVE TO GET OUT OF THE FUCKING WAY!" He yells back.

And then we're both pushed into the never-ending abyss by Gamzee and Tavros who laugh and high-five before running away from our back-to-life avatars.

Soon the day fades into night, and the menu screen is being displayed as I get comfortable on the ground. The other adults hadn't come to get us, so we just peacefully made do with what we had, which was basically our jackets and a few old blankets. Somehow Gamzee and Tavros were passed out on one side of the room, and me and Sollux ended up on the other. Sollux was almost asleep, but me being the insomniac that I am, was just watching his sleeping face as I leaned on one of my arms.

His glasses had fallen off so I folded them up ad set them a ways from his head. It probably would make him mad if they got broken.

Shockingly, it wasn't long before my own eyelids became heavy and I fell to sleep.

**/Authors Note/**

** Holy shit I wrote alot! I didn't mean to make it so long but I couldn't find a good place to stop! It's seriously 5,059 words!**  
**So you guys just get an extra long chapter! :D**

**I don't really have much to say...**

**If the lyrics seem weird, I'm sorry, I just looked them up on a lyrics site. There are actually alot of conflictinglyrics, it's hard to tell what's right -_-"**

**If you have/find some good coverart, link it to me, and that's about it. **

**Uh, if there's misspellings I'm sorry but I did type this up about 2 am :P  
**

**The next chapter is going to be fun though /:] **

**Hope you guys enjoyed and I'll see you next chapter!**

**Disclaimer~ I own nothing in this story besides the plot~**


	14. YouJustWannaStabAgain Can't Believe Its

**/Authors Note/**

**Wow, I'm so awesome at procrastinating, I've had this almost typed up for a few days now. **  
**Blah, sorry guys^^**

**If I forgot to capitalize something, sorry, I wrote half of it from my tablet :P**

**In chapter eight I changed something, it's small I literally added like 5 words, but it helps with this chapter. See if you guys can figure it out *waggles eyebrows*. **

**ok REALITY CHECK!**  
**This story, is almost halfway over. **  
**BECAUSE: I want to end the story when the song lyrics end. **  
**Do I know what I'm doing for the ending? HAHAHAH FUCK NO**  
**But I know it's going to be soon. **  
**I think there's going to be around 30 chapters.**

**Thanks to**: Kurosake, Kaycee Columbell, America96, InuNeko245, Captainforkz, BlackfireForney, Lost Phantom, Obsessivefangirl03, im-not-only-crazy, Death by Violet, **For reviewing.**

**Welcome to the madness**: CottonCandy57, Lost Phantom, massproducingwhiteflags, Terenani Potentia, Heiroflife119, BlackfireForney, Lauren Chamberlain, arakaprincess

**Guest: ((Who said:With that last line, I feel like the story's about to get really depressing again. :/))** Hey now don't be so gloomy! I swear things won't get that bad XD maybe...  
Ok, just don't worry, things will be happy for awhile!

**Guest: ((who said: Well I actually listened to Don't You Dare Forget the Sun for the first time, and it was alot better than I thought it would be. It was pretty sweet really. :P))** Yeah! I love the song so much, I actually love all of their songs! You should check them all out not just that one :D

**psychoB:** Yeah, once it happens there's going to be some wild things happening ;) I accept your hug through the world of virtual-ness! And oh god I don't know if I could make THAT happen XD Hell, I can barely get the Dancestors together! But hey, you never know...you...never...kn..ow...If you think about it though, Nepeta's mom is The Disciple and she's dead, I mean, you could always think of Sollux's dad as The Psionic because I've never specified it. I have no idea about anyone else though...although once I incorporate the Maryams...  
yeah, have some food for thought :D

**Guest:((who used Key-smash in the beginning: HBJBDSBDXJSKNJDRU))** Yeah, I know I can get a little lax when I type early in the morning. Glad you like it though :D

**Lightsupyourworl (Guest)**: And you are the reason that I continue with my story! God your review was just what I needed to figure something out (I'm not telling you what, bit it did). I'm glad I'm doing well with the pairing, sometimes I don't knoww if I'm adding enough...detail? I think that's the word for it. God I'm so glad you like it so much!

**amextris (Guest):** I'm happy to see you again! C: Yes coverart would be wonderful! I'll go look at your stuff :D If I do ever figure out how to upload my own I will ((you're the first one to mention the coverart, you made me happy :D))

**HEY GUEST REVIEWS WOULD YOU KINDLY SPECIFY YOURSELF, BECAUSE AS YOU CAN FUCKING SEE, I HAVE ALMOST RESPONDED TO THE SAME PERSON 3 TIMES!**  
**Ok, seriously though, please say who's who if you review for this chapter (Or all the others...)**

**Hope you enjoy and I'll see you at the bottom of the page :D **

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I was awoken by poorly whispered voices and the sound of the door to the game room opening. I could easily tell who was who, but the conversation in itself made me curious.

"Aw look they're so cute!" (Latula)

"Damn that's adorable, I'm glad we didn't wake them up last night!" (Rufioh)

"Wonder if they'll freak out when we wake them up, they do have to go to school," (Mituna)

"But we have to do it anyway," (Rufioh)

I don't alert them to my awakeness and continued to lie still, trying to figure out what they were ogling about. I cracked open my eyes the tiniest bit and began to curse myself mentally when I was met with face-full of Sollux's shirt.

"HEY KIDS GET YOUR ASS UP IT'S TIME FOR SCHOOL!" Latula yells, successfully making all four of us snap to (complete) awakeness.

"Motherfuck?" Gamzee groans, sitting up and rubbing at his face. He hadn't taken off his clown makeup the night before so now it was smeared weirdly. When Tavros sits up, he has paint on his face, how? I really don't want to know.

Sollux and my arms and legs were tangled together, so I had to make him wake up totally so I could move away.

"Jesus fuck Captor, you're a active sleeper," I grumble, standing up and stretching. He rubs his eyes and blindly reaches for his glasses before looking up at me.

"Thorry KK, geeth, what time ith it?" He yawns, looking at the others.

"Oh, almost eight," Latula says. I freeze and look at her. I glance at Sollux before beginning to panic.

"WHAT!" I yelp, running out the door, looking at the clock by the staircase. "HOLY SHIT SOLLUX GET YOUR ASS MOVING!" The taller teen is quickly running after me, after grabbing Latula's keys and before they can ask what we're doing, the two of us are out the door and in the truck. We watch them run out the door and yell at us before Sollux drives away, and I let out a frustrated moan.

"Ugh, that'th definitely not my favorite way to wake up," Sollux groans, still trying to wake up. I only nod in agreement, rubbing at my eyes. The floor hadn't been to uncomfortable, but it certainly did nothing to help the bruises littering my chest. I was glad we had fallen asleep in our clothes, it would've been worse if we were still in PJ's.

It doesn't take long before Sollux is parking the truck and stumbling out, tossing my the keys before jogging down the street. I blew out a breath, watching my bangs fly off my forehead. We were ridiculously close to not picking up Nepeta. At least we remembered...but then again we technically stole Latula's truck...

"Hi Karkitty! Good morning!" I'm distracted by Nepeta's voice and I smile tiredly at her.

"Morning Catnep, Sollux is going to drive us today," I say simply, pecking her cheek and watch her climb into the backseat. Handing Sollux back the keys, I turn to her as we begin driving again.

"So how are you today?"

"Purrfect! I was talking to Terezi yesterday, and she told me her birthday is coming up soon, so I made her a present, and I'm going over to her house after school today, but you still need to pick me up!" She continues to babble until we pull up to the school. I climb up and help her down to walk her to the doors. I can already see her friends waiting inside.

"See you at the end of the day Catnep," I yell, then run back to the truck.

"Should we go to school or back to Tavros's house," I ask, looking around. Sollux frowns, staring intently at the steering wheel.

"In all technicalitieth, we thtole Latula'th truck, tho we thould probably return it-" He got cut off by his phone ringing. He growls and tosses it over to me, after looking at the caller ID.

"Hello?" I ask, not having the time to see who it is.

"WHY THE HELL DID THE TWO OF YOU TAKE OFF WITH MY TRUCK! THAT'S NOT COOL!" Latula shouts at me. I wince and keep the phone a few inches away from my ear.

"SORRY OK! I had to take my little sister to school, calm the fuck down," I retort, leaning back against the seat. She falls silent before sighing.

"Just get your ass back to Rufiohs, you little bastard." she hangs up with a click and I toss the phone back at Sollux.

"Rufioh's house it is!" I say extremely sarcastically before falling silent. We stay silent for the whole ride back to Tavros's, to tired to really try to bring up a conversation.

Once at Tavros's, we were both tack to the ground by Latula, and she snatches back her keys before growling at us, "Don't fucking take off without warning!" Before releasing us to stand up. I wince as I stand up off the ground, rubbing the bruise over my chest. Standing behind Latula were the other members that were in the house.

"Sorry, it would've been bad if I had forgotten about my kid cousin," I say , glaring at them all.

"Oh, is that why you took off! Sorry for flipping our shit Karbro," Gamzee says with a wide grin, walking over to hug me.

"Did you seriously forget asshat? Jeez you're dense," I growl, pushing his arm away.

"Well, uh, we kind of need to get to school guys," Tavros interrupts, motioning at the backpack he was holding. Sollux glances at his phone and nods with a scowl.

"Yeah we th'ould, thee you Mituna, Latula," Sollux calls, beginning to walk away.

"Hey now, shouldn't I drive ya'll or somethin'," Rufioh protests walking forward a few steps.

"Ugh, I don't uh care, but we do need to be at our first class in uh in about ten minutes," Tavros groans, walking toward Rufiohs truck that was parked in the driveway. I follow him, pulling Sollux.

Meulin grins at us, signing quickly: Have a good day at school!

We luckily get to school as first bell rings. Bypassing lockers, we split and head to our classes. All of them passing as uneventfully as always.

When we walked into Art though, Jade smiled and motioned us over to the far wall, where the other students were standing very confused.

"Today we will be doing something different! You will be able to work on your projects more tomorrow ok?" She says happily. In the center of the room she has the tables pushed together and on top of them were a bunch of books and musical instruments. I glance over them. The books were musical books, and the instruments were all well worn. I counted four violins, three viola's , a few flutes (I think?) and some old guitars. There were a few snare drums, and some other instruments that I don't feel like naming ((A/N: lazy author is lazy -_- ))  
Sitting under the table was a cello and an old electric keyboard.

"As you can see, I have gotten all of the instruments we have and set them on the table, and under it. I know all of you in the class can play something, so I want you to pick the instrument you are most talented at, and I know there will be enough so don't bother asking," she winks knowingly, "And from one of the technical studies book, you shall choose a song and have it playable by the end of the week!" She grins happily and claps her hands together.

"But I won't make everyone play something, some talents will be saved for later," I see her bright green eyes flick over to me and I duck my head slightly, staring at the ground.

"Ok, go ahead and get started then!" She smiles and backs away slightly. Most of the students are cautious as they approach the table, excluding my group. I went for the best guitar there, a worn acoustic with thick strings. Roxy grabbed the keyboard and quickly retreated to the corner of the room. Gamzee found a bass guitar amongst the other instruments and waits for Tavros to grab the drums before retreating to their own space. I watch Sollux to see what he would grab, and to my shock he grabs a violin. Color me surprised when he inspects it closely before grabbing a bow and a book on Mozart songs. ((A/N: Cliche, I know, but Mozart is really hard to play :/ I know from experience so DO NOT QUESTION ME!))

He walks over to me and looks at me weird. "Dude why are you th'taring at me like that?" he asks nervously.

"You play violin?" I state incredulously, looking at the instrument before looking back at his face. He shuffles his feet a bit.

"Uh yeah, my dad taught me a bit when I was younger and I ended up learning alot of it on my own, but to be honest it's the only thing I'm really comfortable with, I mean I'm pretty good with guitar too but...and I thought I told you I played," He chuckles nervously as he grabs a folded up stand from the side of the room and sets it up.

The others (the non important people) had begun playing with whatever musical device they had chosen and the room was beginning to fill with music. With a huff I sit down nearby Sollux and set the guitar on my lap, practicing a few chords before playing through a few songs. A soft playing reaches my ears and I turn to see Sollux hesitantly playing through a few measures of whatever the hell he was playing. It seemed relatively easy, Concerto I was the title. He doesn't notice me watching him as he plays through the entire first page and moves onto something more complicated.

I'm not able to read all of the titles, but I can see the concentration etched into his features as he plays through most of the pieces. I barely noticed that the other students had begun to quiet down to listen to him as well. Every time his finger slipped in a position shift, he seemed to flinch then become more determined to get it right. To be frank I was in awe of how he was playing.

When he pauses to turn the page he stops and looks at everyone with wide eyes, seeing how all of them were staring at him. He slowly removes the instrument from under his chin and waits for everyone to turn back to what they were doing before turning to me.

"How long wath everyone watching me KK?" He asks me, embarrassment obvious in his voice. He tucks the instrument under his arm and turns a few pages in the book as he waits for my answer.

"I don't know, I think around the third page turn," I answer, turning to look at the other students. They kept glancing back at us, it was enough to put me on edge. Before he can answer, Jade walks over with a large grin on her face.

"Wow Sollux I didn't know you could play that well! "She exclaims, grinning at him, "Have you been playing long?"

"Oh, I thtarted playing when I wath around theven but gave it up for a few yearth, I thold my violin tho that I could buy my own computer and I took up playing again a few years later, but then ended up selling it, tho on and off for about ten yearth, if I only count the yearth I've played it would be...five yearth," His face twists into concentration as he has to think of the number.

"Well you're amazing Sollux, I honestly didn't know you could play that well, it was Mozart correct?" Her head tilts as she waits for him to nod. "Mozart is quite difficult, I hope you find something nice to play for us by the end of the week, oh and you can borrow that violin as long as you want," She tosses over her shoulder as she ambles over to another group.

I look at Sollux, a thought flashing through my mind, "Ok, if you had to sell your violin to get your computer, explain to me why you have a guitar, and haven't sold it yet," I say with an accusatory tone. He glares at me lightly, but just turns a few more pages in the book before answering.

"It wath a prethent from 'tuna and I can't exactly thell a prethent, that would be cruel," He mutters lightly.

"oh, sorry, but seriously, why would you sell your violin? I'm sure you would've done fine with it, hell you probably could've used it to make money," I exclaim, staring at him. He just shrugs and moves to put the instrument on his shoulder again.

"I'm not that good, and I needed a computer more than I needed an instrument," He retorts, closing the book and trying to play something by memory. I stare at him as he almost effortlessly plays through at least a three page song from memory before the tone switches and becomes more lilting. My eyebrows crease as I realize the song is an old lullaby or something. It sounds familiar.

_G# A F# E C# E D C# B C# E _

_A G# E F# G# A B C# C#_

_E D C# D F# B G# A B C# _

_BAG#ABC#DE D C# A B C# E C# B C#_

He pauses in his playing as Jade walks over carrying the case to the violin, setting it by the stand. "It has rosin and stuff in it, just try not to break it or anything," She giggles, walking away once more. Before he could play again, I grab his bowing arm .

"What was the song you were just playing," I murmur, confusion probably obvious on my face, but I didn't really care. He frowns and opens his mouth to say something, but stops himself.

"I think it wath,...Candleth and...Clockwork? Yeah, I think that wath the title. It'th an old piethe that my dad taught me," He says, mall smile alighting his face. "My dad had an old muthic boxth with it, it'th really pretty, remind me to thow you it later," He grins at me, folding up the music stand and putting the violin away in it's case. I glance up at the clock and quickly replace my guitar before heading out the door when the bell rings.

Gamzee and Tavros quickly catch up to us, and Roxy is tagging along as well.

"Nice violin playing Solbro, you're motherfuckin' talented!" The juggalo exclaims with a smile, wrapping an arm around Sollux's neck.

"Thankth GZ, but I'm theriousthly not that good," Sollux protests, swinging the violin case up over his shoulder for it to rest on his back. Despite the compliments, he continued to deny that he was talented, and the four of us ended up arguing all the way through the rest of our classes. At the end of the day, we meet up at the front doors, we were going to meet up at Tavros's place again to tweak the song a bit. We played through it ok, but there were still some changes that needed to be made.

When we walk out front, I immediately spot Latula and Mituna standing outside her truck, and the two of them move to greet us. Sollux gains a scowl at this, but doesn't say anything.

"Hey, I've decided to be nice and drive you guys home, as in back to Rufioh's," she says with a large grin.

"Sorry Latula, I have to walk my sister home and Sollux is coming with me, you can drive Gamzee and Tavros," I say quickly, walking past her and dragging Sollux behind me. She shouts after us, but I knew we were already going to be late, so I break into a run, dashing down the street and not stopping until we reach the school, where I see an unfamiliar teacher waiting with Nepeta, Terezi, and Feferi!

Nepeta's face lights up when she see's me, and she moves to hug me before I can take another step.

"Sorry I'm late Catnep, I had to talk to some friends about a project," I explain, smiling at her.

"It's ok! Mrs. Kanaya waited with us! She's not my regular teacher, but Mrs. Aradia and Mrs. Vriska had to go do something," Nepeta explains in one breath, grinning at me. I turn to "Mrs. Kanaya" and smile at her.

"Thanks for watching her, I think, sorry about being late," I say sheepishly. I assumed they were waiting for Terezi's mom to come pick her up or something. The teacher just smiles in a sort of motherly way.

"That's quite alright, it wasn't any problem, I'm waiting for someone of my own in fact," She replies, gesturing at the street. I nod even though I didn't particularly know what she was talking about.

"Is ok if I leave now Nep, I have to work on that project," I ask her, couching down to be at eye level.

She uses one of her signature smiles against me and nods, "Yeah! Glad you picked me up Karkitty!" I feel as if I'm dismissed, so I stand up and walk back to Sollux, and I'm shocked when I look past him and see Latula sitting in her truck, idling at the front of the school.

"Hey Sollux, turn around," I snort, walking forward. He twists around to follow me and see's the two of them

"Oh what the hell," he groans, following me to the gate and we stand outside the door.

"I said I was picking up my sister, we could've walked back to Tavros's," I say the moment she rolls down the window. She grins at me.

"Maybe I was going to leave you, maybe Gamzee said to follow you to pick you up," she jerks her chin to the juggalo grinning in the backseat.

"Sorry Karbro! Thought you would've rather been driven!" He shouts to me.

"Hey Tula, did you realithe there'th NO MORE ROOM IN THE TRUCK!" Sollux exclaims, gesturing to the small cab meant to fit only five at most.

She frowns slightly, but grins. "Simple fix! Karkat sits in Sollux's lap!"

"WHAT?!" I screech, blushing furiously. I stumble a few feet back from the truck and cover my face with my hands.

"NO WAY TULA!" Sollux shouts, blushing similarly, but glares at the laughing lady.

"Why not?" She laughs, looking pointedly at the two of us.

"I would rather walk!" I retort from behind my hands, not looking up at her.

"But Karbro it's be faster if you just let her drive," Gamzee protests with a sly grin. I separate my fingers to glare at him, then return to covering my face. I hear giggles from behind us and I turn to see Mrs. Kanaya covering her mouth with her hands in a poor attempt to hide her laughter. Nepeta was grinning proudly at me and her friends were laughing in the same manner. I groan and turn around front to see another car drive up.

Terezi grabs Feferi's and Nepeta's hands and runs to the car. "Hey mom," she cackles before climbing into the car. Nepeta looks at me and mouths "the ship shall sail!" before shouting "Bye Karkitty!" audibly, as the car drives away.

I sigh and wave bye, removing my hands from my face. At least my blush wasn't as terrible, all it was now was lightly dusting my cheeks.

"Oh fine Karbro, how about Tavbro all up and sits in my lap so you and Sollux can sit in the backseat?" Gamzee chuckles, earning a shouted protest from Tavros. Throughout this whole Mituna was just laughing at our misfortunes.

Kanaya walks up behind us with a small chuckle, "are you having transportation issues?" She asks with a small laugh.

"Nah! These to babies don't want to sit on each others laps or else we would've been gone awhile ago!" Latula responds with a grin.

"Tula!" Sollux shouts, now covering his face with his hands.

"Well, the two of you are going to the Nitram's correct?" She asks us, looking more at me than Latula.

"Yeah, Why?"

"Rose is driving Roxy again and she is picking me up as well, she should be here in a matter of seconds," The lady responds primly, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Oh," is all I can say, watching as the sleek black car Roxy climbed out of yesterday drive up. The windows roll down and I see Rose look at us.

"Hello Karkat, Sollux, why are the two of you just standing there?" She asks the two of us.

"Uh, there'th not enough room in Latula'th truck and we were trying to figure out thomething that doethn't involve any of uth thitting in thomeone'th lap," Sollux answers quickly, glaring at Latula, who just grins at him.

"Well I can drive you," Rose says with a shrug, turning back to the front.

"Wow ok thanks rose," I say with raised eyebrows, then turn to Latula and stick out my tongue childishly. Latula just returns the motion and quickly revs the truck to drive off. I sigh and climbing the backseat with Sollux close behind me.

"Sup Karkat, Sollux," Roxy greets us, sitting on the far side, I end up sitting in the middle. "Hi," I say simply, keeping my gaze turned front. The two teachers seemed to be avidly discussing something, but Rose took enough time to turn on the radio for the us . After a few boring songs about broken hearts, a song _ALL_ of us knew came on, and for a few seconds we all sat in silence before singing along.

"_I don't like walkin' around this old and empty house,_" I begin to sing with a grin, glancing over at Roxy.

"_So hold my hand I'll walk with you my dear,_" Roxy replies, offering her hand and smiling a bit, glancing at Rose. The teacher chuckles lightly before turning back front.

"_The stairs creak as I sleep its keeping me awake,_" Rose lilts, smiling softly at Kanaya. Something clicks in my head, but I don't pay attention to it as Kanaya continues the line.

"_Its the house telling you to close your eyes_," Kanaya murmurs, returning the smile. She glances at Sollux, and he understands the hint and continues with a slight wince.

"_And thome dayth I cant even, trutht mythelf,_" Sollux grins, laughing a bit at his lisp, he glances over with a "help me" so I grin and help him out for once.

"_Its killing me to see you this way,_" I chuckle, mock falling back into the seat like I had been shot.

"_Cause the truth may vary this, ship will carry our, bodies safe to shore,_" we all belt out together. Laughing loudly during the instrumental part, we all have to take a deep breath to continue the unspoken routine.

"_There's an old voice in my head that's, holdin' me back_," Roxy sings with a wide grin.

"_Well tell her that I miss our little talks,_" Rose replies with a sly smile, looking at the girl in the mirror.

"_Soon it will be over, buried in our past_," Kanaya lilts

"_ We uthed to play outthide when we were young-"_ Sollux begins, "_and full of life and full of love_," I join, looking at him with a sideways glance. He laughs thankfully before giving me a smirk.

" So_me days I don't know if I am wrong or if I am right,"_ I say with a shrug and quirked eyebrow.

"_Your mind is(th) playing tricks(th) on you my dear,_" Roxy and Sollux reply simultaneously. We wait in anticipation for the few short seconds to end before we all continue.

"_Hey!__ Don't listen to a word I say!_" Sollux and I sing.

"_Hey!__ The screams all sound the same_!" The girls harmonize, barely having to look at each other.

"_Hey__! Though the truth may vary this, ship will carry our bodies safe to shore,_" we all yell together.

"_You're gone gone, gone away I watched you disappear, all that's left is a ghost of you_," I whisper

"_Now were torn torn torn apart_, _there's nothing we can do_," Roxy begins.

"_Just let me go well meet again soon,_" Rose continues.

"_Now wait wait wait for me, please hang around,_" Kanaya begins.

" _I'll thee you when I fall altheep!_" Sollux finishes.

"_Hey!__ Don't listen to a word I say!_" I yell.

"_Hey!__ The thcreamth all thound the thame_," Sollux continues.

"_Though the truth may vary this, ship will carry our bodies safe to shore,"_ the girls continue, then we all trail off and listen to the artists sing the last part.

We stay silent until Roxy begins laughing, and soon enough we're all out of breath from laughter. I lean back against the seat again and brush a few stray tears from my eyes, seeing Sollux reduces to chuckles and taking off his glasses to rub at his eyes.

"Completely uncoordinated," Kanaya smirks, brushing a tear from her eye.

"And thtill amazing," Sollux boasts, replacing his glasses before laughing a bit more.

" That was quite enjoyable, but we have arrived at the Nitrams, I shall see the three of you tomorrow," Rose says pleasantly, stopping the car.

"Thankth for the ride Rothe," Sollux shouts as he jumps out, and I shout a similar thanks as we walk up to the house, entering.

" We're back!" I shout, then head down to the basement, where I already hear Tavros and Gamzee messing around.

" Thup guyth," Sollux greets, placing the violin case on the ground near the wall.

"Uh, hi you two," Tavros says with a grin, waving slightly as he adjusts something to his drums.

"Hey it all up and took you guys long enough," Gamzee jokes, plucking the strings to his base before comparing them with a diagram.

"Sorry Gamz, we got a little caught up in a song," I smirk, moving over to the guitars. Sollux follows me and the two of us grab the same ones we played yesterday. We sort of do nothing for a few minutes until we all decide we're ready to fix the mistakes we had made on the first attempt (although there weren't many).

After about two hours of that, we are interrupted by Rufioh yelling down the stairs that he had ordered pizza. Immediately we all ditch the instruments and run to the kitchen, almost pushing each other over before we scramble for the box before grabbing what we could and stepping back. The adults stare at us for a few seconds before bursting out into laughter.

"Geez it was like you were starving or somethin!" Latula guffaws.

"Nithe job at tearing up the box you guyth," Mituna giggles, nibbling on his own piece of pizza.

"Hey, we haven't all up and motherfucking eatin' since lunch, of course we're motherfucking starvin!" Gamzee explains around his slice. We all nod in agreement, to busy trying to stuff our faces to answer.

They just smile and shake their heads at us and return to their conversation. I sort of listen in as I eat, slowly beginning to understand sign language.

"So we've contacted Horuss, Aranea, and Meenah," Latula states, marking something down on a piece of paper, then jotting down a few things.

"Yeah doll, and I'm texting Cronus right now, he's saying that Kankri and him will totally come whenever," Rufioh grins, texting without looking at his phone.

"Yay! We can see Vantas again!" Mituna yells happily.

Kurloz: But what about Porrim and Damara? He asks with a slight tilt of his head.

"Shoot! I meant to find out where the Maryams are working," Latula curses a bit before pulling out her phone and beginning to type some key-words. I decided to disregard the conversation because they all resorted to using phones to communicate. We all stand around the kitchen awkwardly before Latula glances up at us.

"Why aren't you guys doing anything?" She asks, quirking an eyebrow.

"Because we don't want to work on our song at the moment, and we're still fucking hungry, problem?" I answer with a scowl, already knowing that they were thinking the same thing.

"Then go to the fucking store or somethin', don't just stand around looking like morons," She scowls back, tossing her keys at Sollux's head, then turning back to her phone. I glance at the others before we all simultaneously sprint out the door and scramble for the truck. Somehow I end up shotgun as Sollux pulls away from the curb, quickly going over the speed limit before slowing down.

We begin jamming out to whatever the hell was on the radio ( I couldn't remember the name for anything), when a thought hits me and I quickly turn down the volume.

"Hey guys, who's paying?" I question, turning around in my seat to look at the three in the back. Silence falls except for the badass bass and guitar players on the radio before I quickly yelp "NOT IT!"

For about five minute's we're all yelling not it until Roxy shooshes us and takes a deep breath before grinning.

"I'm broke," she states, pulling out her pockets.

"Same here!" Sollux and I shout blatantly, patting our pockets. We glare at each other lightly before laughing a bit more, and I turn to look at Gamzee and Tavros.

Gamzee chuckles, "I all up and got $13.14 in my wallet, and Tavbro has $12." He pulls out his wallet and grabs Tavros's from his pocket, causing him to blush deeply, and tosses it up to me, which I pulled out the money and pocketed before tossing back the wallet.

"Awesome, ok so if we have $25.14, and there's five of us, we basically get five dollars to spend each unless if we group together," I theorize, splitting the money to hand the amounts to each person and tossing the change back to Gamzee. Sollux screeches to a stop and grins, turning to us.

"But jutht remember that I'm your ride," He chuckles before jumping out and slamming the door, walking around to join me. Roxy joins the group forming a trio, but Gamzee and Tavros jump out and sprint into the store.

Roxy, Sollux, and I stick together as we meander down the aisle-ways and Sollux somehow ends up being our pack-mule by holding all of the items in one of those small baskets. Before long the three of us have almost spent our fifteen dollars total and I'm grabbing one last box of popcorn before a snarky voice from behind me makes me spin around with a glare. Josh is chuckling as he smirks at Sollux.

"Wow freak, carrying the groceries for your boyfriend," He taunts, smirking at the boy. Sollux glares, but isn't able to do anything as he held a majority of our items. Roxy is a few feet up the aisle, and she turns back as I stalk toward the prick. He turns to meet my gaze with a sneer.

"Leave him the fuck alone Josh," i snarl, stepping up close and glaring down at him. He was probably one of the only teens in school shorter than I was, and he tried to make up for it by being a dickweed.

"Aw defending your boyfriend Vantas? That's so sweet," He mocks, grinning menacingly at me while leaning up into my face. His cohorts are laughing at our supposed humiliation and glaring with their "leader". I growl at him and hear footsteps come up behind me before Roxy speaks.

"How about you go the hell away Josh," Roxy slurs from behind me, smiling evilly at Josh as she brandishes a glass Coca-Cola bottle.

"Oh wow I'm so scared," He says, rolling his eyes, "You and your fucking friends are such freaks Vantas, and you are just the leader of the freak show-" He's cut off quickly by my fist in his jaw. He's thrown to the side into one of the shelves, and he turns to me with a horrified expression, before it morphs quickly into rage and he lunges, forcing me back into the shelf. I hiss as the bruise on my back is hit, but just blindly throw a punch until I can see again and toss him off. His cohorts are beginning to lunge forward to attack my friends as they attack back.

Sollux set down the various food items and was now expertly wrestling with the largest cohort of Josh's, they were pummeling each other harshly and food was falling off the shelves everywhere, the various boxes making it hard to maneuver in the already small aisles. Roxy was holding her own as she boxed it out with another guy, using her Cola bottle to jab at the guy as he brandishes a pocket knife. The two other guys were going to gang up on Sollux and Roxy, before Gamzee appears with a loud HONK! and easily puts them out of commission.

We were beginning to gather attention by now, the few teens in the store were egging us on while adults were yelling at us to stop. I ignored them (as did my friends and Josh's group) as I got a clean hit to Josh's nose, feeling the bone bend before breaking. He growls and tackles me to the ground, gripping at my hair and throwing my head into the floor. I grunt and toss him off, rolling over to push him back to the ground. After a bit of grappling I'm able to return the favor by punching his jaw before slamming his already broken nose into the tile.

I hear Roxy yelp as the knife nicks her, but Gamzee is helping her before I can begin to stand, but that small waver of my attention is enough for Josh to retaliate and leap up, grabbing my collar to slam my head into the shelf behind me, lights flash in front of my eyes and I roughly push him away, but not before he could get a hit to my chest. I gasp and somehow end up kneeling on one knee, panting for breath.

"KK!" Sollux yelps, glancing up from his own fight and beginning to walk towards me, because he had somehow ended up halfway down the aisle, before the guy he was fighting takes the opportunity to hit him to the ground from behind. Suddenly Tavros knocks through the crowd to help Sollux by pushing the guy into the spectators, who quickly moved out of the way.

Josh went one level higher on his level of Scumbag and kicks me in my chest again. I land on my back and wince pain, trying to regain my breath before shakily standing, brushing away the blood from a split lip. I begin to lunge at him again, before a store clerk quickly intercepts me, and it seems like they swarm around us, keeping us all pinned back from each other.

I growl lowly at Josh, who glares at me before I hear something in the distance that sort of catches my attention.

Police Sirens.

**/Authors Note/**

**Am I a douche for ending it there?**  
**Yes, yes I am**

**Did the fight happen a bit too quickly? I feel like it did...**

**Anyway, I apologize for not updating, I was being a lazy asshole :/ **

**If you're wondering why Karkat started the fight: HE WAS CALLED A FREAK. AND JOSH CALLED HIS FRIENDS FREAKS. Wouldn't you beat someone up too?!**

**The notes in the art class are legit too, I can play the song on violin and I have it all figured out :D **

**I finished this at exactly 2:35 am. You guys are fucking welcome :P **

**And this is well over 6,000 words, does that make up for the absence of update? **

**Hope you enjoyed,and I'll see you next chapter! (that I hopefully won't take forever on)**

**((and sorry in advance for any misspellings etc.))**

**~Disclaimer~ I don't own anything in this story besides the plot**~


	15. HalfThisHardYouNeverKnewYourLi ghtWaDark

**/Authors Note/**

**Sorry for not updating in a more mannerly time, so I typed this nice chapter up pretty quickly to say sorry ^^ Sometimes I don't update quickly because I give people time to review :P**

**For the police scene thing I had to ask my mom and a friend of mine for help XP even so I have no idea if the information is correct...so if it seems weird I'm sorry!**

**((WARNING! I CAN'T WRITE CRONUS OR KANKRI!))**

**Anyways, thanks to:** 333stepha, InuNeko245, Scetchbook123, jakefan, Captainfork, Wolfen Artist of Hetalia, Kaycee Columbell, mellosgoggledgamer, Obsessivefangirl03, BucketBucketBucketBucket, **For Reviewing.**

**Welcome to the madness!**: jakefan, SmileyTurtle, Scourgesisterswerehere, KuroKokoro13,

**ThaneOfStorm**: Ah shit goddamnit I suck at math at anytime past 12am -_-" I'll go fix that! Ok, now it's fixed!...ms. Kanaya? Did I not put Mrs. Kanaya somewhere? I swear I did...

I know most people are probably thinking that XD

Sorry for messing up!

**psYchObItch**: Yeah! Ass kicking is so much fun to write :3 And i changed the sentence where Sollux says what instruments he plays X3  
And Silas is actually Spades Slick. :P Someone asked me the question saying "is his dad Spades?" and I said "sure why not," so yup :P

**Guest:(((:Aw shit. Awshitawshitawshitawshitawshit. 0_0)))** *muffled noises* BWAHAHAHAH YOUR RESPONSE JUST KILLED ME!

**Darthvaderisback**: Oh my gosh HI! It was times like these when I wished that I had a youtube account so I could tell you how awesome your video was, especially since it inspired this entire story, I'm glad you like it so much! Holy crap there are rumors being spread about my fic? o/o Yay I guess!

* * *

/

I sit in one of the ridiculously uncomfortable hard plastic chairs, pressing a few fingers against my split lip. The police officers had gotten our group and Joshes into different cars and we were all driven to a sort of juvenile center, but Sollux was separated from us since he was legally an adult. Gamzee was questioned about his age, but since he was seventeen they had to let him stay with us.

I was now glaring at the female officer that had driven Roxy and I to the station, and she just retaliated with a blank icy stare. Gamzee was on one side of me, he hadn't really gotten injured, the guy with the knife was able to inflict a shallow cut on his arm, but he had cleaned up the blood. Roxy had a palm pressed against the cut on her cheek from the knife, and was leaning back against the chair.

Since Josh and I were brawling it out, I had gained a new black eye, split lip, and my head was throbbing from the few times he had slammed my head into various places, and my chest still hurt from the bruising. Tavros had only hurt his right leg when he helped Sollux out, but it was enough to make him limp. I had no idea what state Sollux was in, because all I got was a glance at him before he was taken away.

My thoughts are distracted when a male officer walks in carrying a box of medical supplies, setting them down on a table before turning towards us and inspecting what we needed before setting them out. He didn't say anything as he first fixed up Roxy before helping out me then moving onto Gamzee. He left the room with only a slight glance at the other officer before clicking shut the door.

"So, how about you guys start by telling me what happened, your guardians will be contacted after we talk," She says, giving us a weird look before jotting something down on her clipboard.

A jolt of fear runs through me when she she mentions parents, I'll have to call my mom most likely, shit. I shake my head slightly to clear my thoughts and glare at her.

"Well, Josh called me and my friends freaks, so I punched him in the face," I growl, returning her look before being interrupted by Roxy.

"And then the douche lunged at Karkat and then he made his friends start to fight us," she continues.

"And uh, we stepped in and fought back in self defense," Tavros stutters, keeping his gaze on his knees. He seems to be really scared, making me sort of nervous. I began to dwell on what our parents would do once they came to pick us up. It could end up being bad.

She looks at us skeptically, "Uh-huh, well that's quite the simple explanation, your other friend, 'Sollux' is saying the same thing, but we'll also have to cross-check it with the other teens, call your parents alright," She says, walking out of the room, clicking the door shut.

Roxy is already calling before the door is even closed, and a wince crosses her face as the phone is picked up.

"Hey Rose, uh, listen, you sort of need to come get me," She falls silent and winces again. "Police station." Her phone is suddenly held at arms length before she sighs and yells, "I can explain ok! So we kinda got into a fight..." She continues to talk until she falls silent and nods with a nervous expression. As she hangs up she groans and tosses her phone to me, knowing I needed it.

" She is so going to kill me, and so is Kanaya, I heard her in the background," She groans, putting an arm over her eyes as she leaned back in the chair. Tavros is talking on his own phone, and I tune into his conversation.

"Yeah, uh, well, you need to come uh get me..." Tavros mutters, "I'm uh at the police station," He grimaces and shuts his eyes, "And yeah, everyone else is uh here too, although Sollux was taken uh, to a different room," He trails off again to listen to the other end before hanging up.

"Uh, Kurloz can get you out Gamzee, and uh Rufioh's getting me out, what about you uh Karkat?" He questions, looking down at me. I stare at the pink phone in my hand before unlocking my screen and dialing the number for my own phone. After crossing my fingers and looking intensely at the wall, I'm about to give up before a click and a gruff voice answers the phone.

"The little shit isn't here, bye" and another click signifies that he hung up.

"FUCK!" I yell, about to throw the phone before Roxy yanks it out of my hand. She glares at me before pocketing the device.

"Uh, Karbro? You ok?" Gamzee questions, looking at me.

"Dad picked up," I mumble, grabbing his phone instead. I hesitate and grimace I begin to dial my home phone, before it begins buzzing and I answer it with a questioning face.

"Hello?"

"Oh, Karkat? This works out, I wanted to say that Kankri and Cronus just got here, so Kankri can bail you out if need be," She says, I can tell they're in Rufioh's truck because an unfamiliar voice is ranting about something and two others are talking to him at the same time and she was definitely driving.

"Uh, yeah, that's be great," I stutter before hanging up, "Thank Gad, Kankri can bail me out," I sigh thankfully, tossing back his phone.

"That's motherfucking great Karbro! I wonder how Solbro is going to get out of this situation though," He muses, opening his phone and beginning to supposedly text him. We all sit in almost silence until the officer returns.

"Your guardians are here to bail you out," She states, making motions for us to follow her.

"Hey, what about Sollux?" I ask nervously, since Gamzee had never answered us on whether not Sollux had texted back.

"Oh, he's going to be released too, all of you are only receiving warnings for now, as well as the other kids," She says simply, being a bit more friendly with us now. We fall silent as we walk out to the reception area, where we are met by the angry glares of our 'guardians'. Even though Latula didn't sound angry over the phone, she certainly looked angry right now.

We keep our gazes lowered as we begin to walk past them, but are stopped by a hissed order from Latula. She grabs ahold of my arm since I was closest to her.

"We have to wait for Sollux," She growls, tightening her grip on said arm. I wince and turn back to the door where we left. After a few minutes Sollux walks out, glaring at the officer behind him. Now that I got a good look at him, the red lens to his glasses was cracked and he had a dark bruise surrounding his eye. He was holding his left arm to his side by the elbow, so I assumed he had hurt it somehow.

"Since you've all been released, and the papers have been signed, you are free to leave," the officer reports, turning back and disappearing behind the desk once more.

"Move," Latula growls, releasing me. We all move out in a group, an awkward silence hanging over our heads as we walk to where they were parked.I noticed that there was an addition to the group of adults, but the moment was to awkward for me to look up and see exactly who it was.

After a few moments of silence I hear a quiet chuckle, seemingly from Rufioh. I glance up to see Latula covering her mouth with both hands as tears ran down her face. Then she seemed to break and laughter poured out of her, and soon enough all of the elders were laughing, with us staring at them in bewilderment. I slowly began to realize what was happening once she tried to speak.

"OH...MY...GOD...You actually, hahah, thought we...were mad?!" She gasps between breaths.

"uh...yeah?!" I say in shock, the others nod frantically in agreement and after a few minutes of laughter someone else answers us.

"You kicked their asses! Of course we aren't mad dolls!" Rufioh chuckles, patting Tavros's shoulders.

Kurloz: You guys did a good job in kicking their ass, we saw the boys as their parents came to get them :O)  
The juggalo smiled tightly, signing quickly. I smile a bit at this, but then distracted by another voice.

"According to the first person accounts, the teen you guys beat you beat up called you and your friends an unpleasant name, which meant that you had a proper reason to act in defense, it also seems that you were able to gain the upper hand on them all, is that correct?" The unfamiliar voice on the phone questions. My brows furrow as I find the figure beside Mituna, who was grinning happily as we walked along. I notice he was the addition to our group, and a shock runs through me when I realize who it is.

"Wait, uh yeah that's right but aren't you Kankri?" I question. Everyone sort of stops as the two of us stare at each other, and after a few minutes one could literally feel the tension between the two of us.

"Yes I am Kankri, do you mean to say you don't remember meeting? Well, now that I say that you very well wouldn't remember it we were very young after all, but I would think that you would remember me, now that we are meeting again I'm shocked to see how much you've grown," He begins to say, and I end up cutting him off.

"Whoa whoa whoa, we met? Like, how young were we?" I ask. The adults stare at me in a sort of shocked manner, like they hadn't expected me to cut him off like that. But they all stare as he responds without missing a beat.

"Well, I would say you were about seven then, I was around thirteen at the time, I think this because Nepeta was quite young and living with her mom, and Equius hadn't been sent off to work yet, how is Equius? We haven't talked at all since that last time-" He rambles again and I cut him off. Again.

"Didn't you know? Equius now works somewhere, I don't even know where, I myself haven't talked to him in..." I trail off, counting in my head, "About five years, and I'm not sure why I don't remember you, but I don't and that's weird because i seriously should remember you," I frown, trying to think back.

"Really? That's quite strange, and where was Equius sent off to? I heard that he had moved out recently, but why is it that he hasn't contacted any of us?-" I stop him from talking by covering his mouth with his hand.

"Not now ok? I'll explain later," I hiss, moving away again. The adult just stares at me with wide, red eyes before nodding. The others slowly began walking again and I move to Sollux's side, not meeting gazes with anyone. When we get to where the truck and Rose's car was parked, we all split into different groups to see if we'd have to go back to get Latula's truck or not.

Roxy, Rose, Kanaya, Gamzee, and Tavros in the car, but there wasn't enough room in Rufioh's truck, so they left Sollux and I to let Latula get her truck from the store parking lot for us to go home in. Kankri volunteers to stay behind, although I'm pretty sure I understand why.

Once they drive away, he turns to me, ignoring Sollux. I was personally fine with Sollux being there, so I just glared back.

"What is going on with Equius?" He asks plainly. I'm sort of shocked he doesn't create a whole lecture to ask that simple question, but I just give him a look and explain.

"When he moved out he became a traveling mechanic, but he was soon commissioned to work for a company, and because he either broke his goddamn phone, or tinkered with it, he had to constantly get new ones and he never informed us when he got a new phone so we could never get into contact with him. His boss is really fucking strict and almost fired him just because he went to his fucking mom's funeral, and when he asked if he could take part time to take care of Nepeta his boss said she was a measly distraction and that he should get the hell out if that was the case, so tah-fucking-dah that's why fucking Equius is now no longer involved in our lives!" I finished my rant yelling and cursing, earning worried glances from Sollux and shocked ones from Kankri.

"Oh, well I'm quite sorry to hear that, his boss must be rather strict for him to be unable to contact us, of course it is also his own responsibility to keep up with us using a proper working phone, does he have any sort of computer? Or any other way we could contact him? All in all this is quite the situation to deal with, I understand why you didn't want to tell anyone else about it, well other than you Sollux," he corrects himself, turning to the teenager standing behind me. "Are the two of you together?" He questions, tilting his head to the side. His white-blonde hair fell onto his forehead in a manner similar to mine.

"WHAT?! NO!" I yelp quickly, glaring at my cousin. He looks slightly taken back, and his gaze flicks between the two of us before landing on me.

"Oh, I'm sorry to have possibly triggered you, it just seemed like it by the way you two interacted, I'm sorry for assuming," He says, a slightly offended tone to his voice.

"We're jutht friendth, we only met a few dayth ago," Sollux continues.

Before we can talk anymore, Latula arrives with her truck, alone. "The others already went to Rufioh's, so I'm assuming you want to go there too?" She says once we climb into the vehicle, letting Kankri sit shotgun.

"Yeah, thome of our thtuff ith there anyway," Sollux says, referring to the violin he was borrowing and the few papers of homework we had received and didn't really need.

"Alrighty!" Latula grins and speeds away, beginning to engage a conversation with Kankri. I rub at my temples in a feeble attempt to help the headache that was beginning to pound against my skull. A frustrated sigh makes it's way out of my lips as I lean forward, keeping my elbows propped on my knees.

"You alright KK?" Sollux asks softly, "I know Josh kicked you pretty hard," He asks, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just a headache," I mutter, "And it doesn't hurt that bad, I'll just need to take medicine or something," I mumble, looking up to see we were at Rufioh's house. Everyone was sitting out front and talking to one another. Well, Roxy had been taken home by Rose obviously, but Tavros and Gamzee were talking to each other, and the adults were talking to an unfamiliar guy who turned toward us when we drove up.

"Hey Kanny, is that your cousin?" The man asks, wrapping an arm around Kankri's shoulders and looking me up and down as I climbed out of the truck. I look at him with a glare but respond.

"Yes I am his cousin," I snap, walking past him toward Gamzee and Tavros, pulling Sollux with me.

"Thup guyth," Sollux greets, sitting down on the grass with them. I join them and rest my head on my hands again.

"So how all up and injured are you Solbro, they didn't really motherfuckin hurt me and Tavbro that much," Gamzee states, looking at the teen.

"He got my eye good, and my glatheth, and my fucking arm too, otherwithe I'm ok, jutht bruithed ath hell," Sollux replies with a wince, motioning at his face and arm. He turns toward me and grimaces when he looks closely at my face.

"Theemth like you got the wortht of uth KK, geeth Josh didn't hold back did he?" He growls , reaching down to move my head. I scowl and push his hand away.

"I'm fine asshat, Josh is just a dickweed who took some low blows," I snarl, rubbing at my head again.

"You all up and alright Karbro?" Gamzee questions nervously, looking at me closely. I sigh and glance up at him.

"Well, the douche slammed my head into the fucking floor so now I have a headache, would that help define how I'm feeling?"

He stares at me wide eyed for a few moments, "uh, not motherfucking good?" he says hesitantly.

"No shit," I mutter, shutting my eyes against the meager sunset. I hear the adults walk over to our little group.

"So Sollux and Karkat, do you need to a ride home?" Rufioh asks.

"I gueth tho," Sollux answers, glancing over at me. I just nod in response.

"Oh yeah, give me your phone Sollux," I say, grabbing it out of his pocket before he can ask. He sighs and runs into the house as I begin to dial. I anxiously wait for someone to pick up, but when someone does, I restrain myself from cursing.

"He's not fucking here, I swear, I why do you people keep calling for him!" Click.

"For fucks sake," I hiss, throwing the phone onto the ground. I run my hands though my hair in an attempt to clear my mind. I can feel the others concerned gaze on me, but I ignore them as Sollux returns with our things.

"Alright, let'th go," he says quickly, grabbing his phone from the ground and pulling me up by my shoulder. I growl at him but don't say anything as we walk over to Rufioh.

We're silent the entire drive to Sollux's house and Sollux was the one that thanked Rufioh for driving us, once he was gone though, Sollux turned to me.

"What the hell are you being mopey about?" He asks as we walk up to the door. I stay silent as I walk back to his room and move to sit on the bed, waiting for him to join me. I could hear him talking to his dad, and it takes a few minutes before he walks in and closes the door.

"My fucking dad, he's been picking up my phone, which means I have no idea where my mom is," I state, glaring at him. His mouth falls open and all he says is a soft "oh" as he walks over to his computer chair and sits down in it.

"Yeah, fucking 'oh'" i snarl, letting myself fall back on his bed and cover my eyes with my arm. "Can you go get me some painkillers or something, my fucking head is killing me," I mutter, hoping that he hears me. To answer that I hear him stand and walk out the room, moving through the hallway to move to the kitchen. I let my thoughts wander a bit before he returns.

Sitting up, I take the pills from him, swallowing them before drinking the glass of water he had brought.

"Your glasses are pretty messed up, can you get them fixed?" I asked, seeing them set by his clock on the side table. I picked them up gently and eyed them, wincing at the spider webbed cracks on the lens.

"Yeah, I can, it'll take a few weekth though, I've broken them before, but I'll have to wear contactth till then, damn I hate thothe thingth," He sighs, standing and walking over to take them. "I'll be back in a thec, I gotta tell my dad."

I watch his back as he walks out, then sigh and lean against the wall. So much had happened in just one week, it was ridiculous. I got beat by my dad, found by a friend, and stayed at his house, met a cousin, and only in the span of about five days. Another sigh escapes me as I run a hand through my hair, spiking it up more than it already was. When he walks back in he gives me a small smile.

"Do you want to get a thower? Your other clotheth were wathed," He chuckles.

"Yeah why not," I sigh, standing and grabbing my clothes. I walk to the bathroom and get a shower. :P

((Sollux POV))

While Karkat is showering I inspect my own wounds. My dad had barely questioned the fact that my glasses were broken and that I had a bruised eye. My arm had been slammed into the ground pretty hard, I'm pretty badly bruised because the damn guy I ended up fighting ended up slamming me against the ground multiple times. Although, I got in some really good hits on him too.

I pull off my shirt with a wince and move to look at myself in the mirror. Yep, just a bunch of bruises, nothing to terrible. Sighing, I grab some fresh clothes and go to the bathroom in Mituna's room, taking a quick showerand moving back to my room. Karkat was still showering, so I sit down at my computer, Gamzee had attempted to message me, but I didn't bother messaging him back, I didn't want to deal with his stupid quirk.

Frowning, I glance at the time, seeing it was only around nine, which was ridiculously early for me to try to sleep, but I honestly didn't want to try to start another strand of coding. Not really thinking, I climb onto the bed and pull the covers over my head to make it darker. After a few moments of lying in almost complete silence I ended up drifting off to sleep.

((Karkat POV))

When I return from my shower, running my fingers through my hair to rid it of stray droplets, I glance at the time and see that it was a little bit before 10 p.m. My gaze flicks around the room, searching for Sollux, but after a moment I realize that the teen was already lying in bed, and had his comforter pulled to cover his entire face. Laughing quietly at the sight, I take a few steps to look closer at him. Judging by the soft movements of his shoulders, he was already deeply asleep. I carefully and gently pull down the comforter so I could clearly see the hit he had received on his face, and it made me wince in pity before I sigh.

Tossing the dirty clothes into what I assumed was a dirty-clothes pile, I sit down at the edge of the bed. Trying not to act like a creeper and watch Sollux sleep, even though I could definitely occupy myself by doing so for a few hours. My headache had been toned down dramatically with the combination of painkillers and a warm shower, so it was more of a dull throb instead of a stabbing pain. Even so, I massage my temples for a few seconds before glancing at the pallet on the ground. Sollux had never cleaned up from the time he had tried to sleep on the ground and it looked decently comfortable.

Since I didn't want to end up sleeping up against the teen again, I stand and make the pallet a bit more presentable and move over to the bedside table. Setting his alarm for him (since he had forgotten to do so) and click off the lamp. I situate myself in the most comfortable position on the measly pat of blankets and lay facing the ceiling.

I begin following the patterns in the paint until my mind begins to wander to other topics, and I'm suddenly contemplating the reasons why my mom didn't pick up. I have ti roughly shake my head to clear the thoughts and try reverting to something less stress-inducing. I try focusing on Sollux's breathing, which i can easily hear in the quiet of the house. Soon enough my other thoughts are fading away and I fall into a half-sleep stupor.

I'm broken out of that when Sollux's phone begins to buzz loudly, and it takes me a moment to figure out what it was before I jump up and stumble over to his bedside table to answer it, screw checking ID.

"Hello?" I ask in the most annoyed voice I can muster at...one am.

"Karkat? I guess I woke you...I'm sorry, but I wanted to call and tell you that I couldn't answer earlier because I was out and needed to leave the phone here, I'll call you again later Kat," and with that abrupt exit the phone fell silent again. After a few minutes of just dial-tone, I hang up and set the phone back on the table. Groaning in annoyance, I begin to climb into bed out of habit before I realize what I'm doing. I catch myself though and end up stumbling back onto my makeshift bed. Blushing furiously, I was thankful I couldn't see how ridiculous I looked. Falling back onto my pallet I let out a frustrated groan that was fully muffled by my pillow. And Since the position was fairly comfortable, I allowed myself to lay there until I fall asleep.

It was only a few hours later when I'm awoken from my light sleeping state by a distressed shout. Since it being almost five a.m. with barely any sleep, my thoughts were a bit clouded as I sit up and rub at my head. Sollux was obviously still asleep, but apparently trapped in a nightmare because he whimpered again. Muttering some unsavory things under my breath, I climb on-top of the mattress and shake his shoulder.

"Hey fuckass," I murmur, half-heartedly shaking him and still hoping he's wake up. When he doesn't answer I growl under my breath and end up pushing him into the wall opposite.

"Captor!"

"FUCKING HELL!"He yelps, jumping to awakeness and lashing out blindly. The back of his hand connects with my shoulder with a sharp slap, and I turn to glare at him even though I know he can't see it. "KK?"

"You better have a damn good reason to have woken me up," I growl at him, sitting cross-legged on the far side of his bed. He's silent for a few moments and I'm afraid he's fallen asleep again before he answers.

"It wath jutht a bad dream, thorry KK, thorry for waking you," He replies with a slight slur to his tone. I could clearly hear the exhaustion in his voice though, and I feel a tad bit guilty before beginning to retort...

Except he'd fallen asleep.

With a slump of defeat I just end up stretching out on the ridiculously comfortable mattress and focus on his breathing again as I sleep.

* * *

**/End Note/**

**I keep ending these on them sleeping...I fix that I guess, But I want to/need to update so here you go!**

**I literally flipped a coin to choose whether to involve Kankri or not, it came out heads XD **

**Uh, I watched a Harry Potter marathon (which is rounded up to around 20 Hours total) So while I'm typing this up, I literally got ZERO sleep last night (to busy watching and crying...) SO if you notice any seriously weird statements or ridiculous mistakes just tell me and I'll fix them :)**

**Hope I didn't mess up anything too bad...**

**Disclaimer~I own nothing in this story besides the plot~**


	16. No,I thinkYou're BetterOff LookingAlone

/Authors Note/

**So the only reason I'm updating so early is because:**  
**I start school again August 1st. **  
**And it's going to be a bitch trying to update. **  
**"Oh August first? You've still got another what eight days?" **  
**Fuck that. I still have stuff I need to do, supplies to buy, school to figure out, and friends to meet up with before we're confined in the walls of that hellhole for fucking ever. **  
**Once school starts, you guys will be lucky to get an update once a week. And no, weekends will be sleeping time for me, I'll be lucky if I get any computer time at all for that matter. Once I get used to the jacked up schedule I'm going to have, I'll probably be able to update better but I'm warning you guys now that I probably won't be able to get another update in before it starts.**  
**Hopefully I'll be able to get stuff done quick enough but there sure as hell aren't going to be any guarantees, although you never know, I could always update but it's doubtful. **

**Thanks to**: Scetchbook123, im-not-only-crazy, . , Kaycee Columbell, mellosgoggledgamer , **For reviewing**

**Welcome to the madness**: meanderingMasquerade

**Lauren C**: Why thank you :3

**ThaneOfStorm**: Ah, now I understand XD

**Guest :** Yeah, it only has ._. Shocking isn't it.

**psYchObItch**: Wow...ok yeah true XD  
AND OH GODDAMMIT EVERYONE HIDE!

**Oh yeah, me and my friend made a Homestuck video that's posted on YouTube, it's called: "Karkat: Be a Cannibal" There is SolKat, GamKar, and DaveKat included, go look it up :)**

**Here's the link for you lazy people who don't feel like it: /watch?v=QiTooOt6hCA **

**Oh, I gave Sollux's dad a name! It's Deithelm which a friend of mine found and it means "people" "helmet" "protection" along those lines :) But as a nickname, I'll most likely be calling him Thelm, :]**

* * *

BEEPMOTHERFUCKINGBEEP

I hiss and move to slam my hand on the snooze, also sending the alarm clock off the table. I sit up and rub at my face, groaning a bit at the annoying pounding in my head. Sollux's arm was thrown across my waist, almost pinning me to the bed. He's quite obviously still asleep, snoring lightly and drooling a bit. I snicker at this and nudge his arm off me, shoving him to the side as well. He just mutters a bit and turns over. I stand and press a hand to my forehead, growling as I stumble over to the door.

I walk out to the kitchen, where Deithelm is enjoying a cup of coffee (which I shudder at because ew, it's coffee) and I just nod at him as I go to the medicine cabinet and pop some Advils. Then I walk around the kitchen and shockingly find things for tea, so i brew myself a cup, silently enjoying the steam until his dad speaks.

"Is Sollux up yet?" I look at him to see that he's staring at me, a smile twitching the corners of him mouth.

"Nope, he was actually snoring when I got up," I smirk, and his dad chuckles a bit before standing.

"Well I'll get his ass up, enjoy your tea," i nod at him and continue to enjoy my tea as I hear him shouting at Sollux to get his lazy ass out of bed and annoyed yelps reach my ears. I assume he's successful because he returns a few minutes later, brushing his hands off and sitting at the table once more. He opens up a newspaper and begins reading it, and I get a faint sense of deja-vu from when my mom was doing the same thing, but it's gone once Sollux stumbles into the kitchen, growling at his dad as he gets some painkillers for himself.

"Morning sunshine," I tease, smirking as he scowls at me. Something sparks in his eyes though, making me a bit worried once he speaks.

"Fuck you KK, I'm not in the mood," He snarls, stalking back to his room. I stare in shock for a few moments as I hear his door slam shut before turning to his dad.

"Uh...?"

"He's probably got a pretty nasty headache at the moment, judging by the type medicine he took," he answers, drinking out of his coffee. "What time did he go to sleep last night?"

"Around ten I guess, why?" I question, finding it a tad strange to get a headache simply because he went to sleep too early.

"He usually doesn't sleep till around two am, I don't know why but if he sleeps too early he gets a headache, just ignore him for the day, he'll probably get worse," Thelm replies with a smirk, then returns to his paper. I shrug and decide to leave the topic alone, it wasn't exactly my problem. Although, he kinda was my ride and Nepeta's...oh yeah Nepeta was at Terezi's,...never mind.

Since I was already dressed, I run my fingers through my hair to hopefully make it look somewhat less messy. Although it's probably spiked up as always. I see that Sollux's door is open, so I hesitantly walk in to see that he's already changed and sitting at his computer. His bedsheets where still scattered on the floor, mixing with the make-shift bed that the two of us neglect to use.

He was plugged to his computer so I quietly walk around to grab my shoes and my homework before also checking his phone in case my mom had called (which she hadn't) before absconding the fuck out of there.

I huff out a breath as I sit on the couch, looking at the homework I had basically completed excluding a few simple problems, which I completed now. Then I just sat on the couch and waited for Sollux to emerge from his room since I didn't want him yelling at me. Bipolar asshole. I ponder why his dad seemed to care, but not exactly, it was honestly strange how his dad reacted. I don't have to wait much longer before I hear him re-emerge from his room, now wearing a jacket and holding the violin case. I hesitantly talk to him, hoping not to get my head bitten off.

"Nepeta's at Terezi's so we don't have to pick her up," I murmur quietly, watching his face to gauge his reaction. He flinches and nods jerkily before walking into the kitchen, not saying a word to me. I frown, guess his headache was pretty bad, and stand, looking at the time. It would be time to leave in a few minutes, so I move to wait by the door.

Sollux returns with a deeper scowl than before, and I notice that his eyes are now the same dark blue as his left eye. I don't mention it though because I'm sure it would annoy him. He also had the violin slung over his shoulder. He didn't say a word as he walks past me so I don't even attempt talking as I follow him. Our entire walk to school was held in awkward silence, even as we reach the front gates.

Gamzee and Tavros are already there and they begin to greet us, but Sollux just brushes them off and walks away without a word.

"Uh, whats motherfuckin' wrong with Solbro?" Gamzee asks curiously, watching the teens retreating back.

"His dad told me he has a nasty headache, and now he refuses to talk to me or anyone else," I growl in response, running my hand through my hair. Tavros look a bit nervous but speaks up.

"That's too bad...do you think we should just leave him alone for the day?"

"Yeah, he looked prepared to cuss me out when I fucking teased him this morning, and plus he's wearing contacts today which apparently annoy the shit out of him, so lets all just back the fuck off," I sigh, walking towards the school.

They seem to agree with me and we silently head to our classes.

The day was pretty uneventful, although the students had found out about the fight between Joshes group and ours, which of course meant rumors were spread and attention was drawn to us. The upside to that was that Josh left us alone. Otherwise, the day continued as always, more lectures, more work, more teachers, annoying kids, and of course Sollux was being an absolute ass. His dad was correct when he said Sollux would get worse. Although by the time lunch rolled around his biting insults seemed to be losing their venom, and he only stayed for a few minutes before absconding to who the hell knows where.

Before long it's time for Arts class, and when we walk in Jade informs us that we will be alternating between working on the project and we could do whichever because she would be helping out some fellow teachers with something or other. Our group immediately splits up, and I'm about to go to my own little corner when I see Sollux still sitting at our table, with his head lying down. I debate for a moment before accepting that I was probably going to get yelled at and huff out a sigh as I sit next to him.

The room is pretty loud, which probably isn't helping his headache, and I can see him flinch as I place my hand on his shoulder. I lean down close to his face and speak quietly even though it's probably doing nothing to help him.

"You ok?" I ask, trying to coax him to lift up his head. At first he doesn't respond, and I almost wonder if he's asleep but once he does lift his head up, I see there's tears at the edges of his eyes. He must've taken his contacts out sometime through the day because I'm staring into his red eye as well as his blue one.

"Yeah, jutht thith headache, don't worry about it," He mutters, breath hitching slightly, then laying his head back down. I begin to protest, but he ignores me, and soon enough the bell rings, and he pushes me away before hurrying out of the classroom, keeping his head lowered. As I stare at him, then slowly begin walking out the room, I'm joined by Gamzee and Tavros, and the two of them watch him hurry away as well.

"Well he's a bipolar asshole isn't he," I mutter, "That's not just a headache," I say to the two of them. Gamzee sort-of frowns, then shrugs.

"Well go help Solbro then," he replies, walking ahead of me, pulling Tavros along. I begin to protest before giving up, there was only a few more classes to the day, then home free for the weekend!

I didn't get a chance to see Sollux though, even though we were in the same classes together, he kept his head down and refused to speak. None of the teachers seemed to care actually, which is surprising and not at the same time. By the time school was out, I was fully prepared to yell at the guy to get his attention if I had to. But it seemed that I didn't because once I stepped up to him he actually acknowledged me.

"KK call my dad or thomething will you, I won't be able to walk home," He whispers, handing me his phone. I stare at him skeptically before nodding and calling his dad, who says to call Mituna instead, because he couldn't. I heard the knowing tone in Thelm's voice, making me return to the thoughts if this has happened before. Once I do, Mituna seems to understand as well and says he'll be there in a few minutes. I turn to Sollux, but pocket his phone when I see he's now sitting on the ground and covering his face with his hands. His shoulders are shaking slightly and his breaths seem pretty uneven. God he's seriously worrying me!

"Dude, shoosh, calm down," I try to sooth him as I rub his shoulder. He doesn't answer, just gives a half-hearted attempt to shrug me off. I frown more and stay silent until Mituna drives up, thankfully not after too long. He doesn't say a word as the two of us get in, and we were silent the entire drive. Sollux quickly absconds into the house once we stop, and I'm about to get out, but Mituna grabs my arm.

"Take care of him ok, he can be a bit...dangerous like thith," he warns, looking at me seriously, I nod slowly before backing away, and walking into the house. His dad wasn't home, that fact made obvious by all the lights being turned off and the truck gone from the driveway. I can already guess where he ran too, since he had thrown his bag and stuff on the ground in the hallway and managed to kick off his shoes as well, leaving those by his door which was partly open.

I leave the lights off as I walk in, kicking off my shoes as my sight falls on Sollux, who was now curled up on his bed, hands pressed to the side of his head harshly. I don't realize that I'm moving until I'm sitting on the bed, a strange pang of pity shooting through my chest as I gently pull his head onto my lap and begin threading my fingers through his hair. He tenses at the movement, but doesn't try to say anything as I begin to hum a quiet lullaby.

I didn't know if it was actually helping or not, but is seemed to calm him down more, so I continued to thread my fingers through his hair until his breathing calmed and tears weren't streaking down his cheeks and he wasn't trying to get away from me anymore. I don't realize how late it had gotten until the door is very careful opened, and Sollux's dad peeks his head in. Seeing me, he simply nods and leaves, not saying a word.

Brushing that moment aside, I know that Sollux is now asleep, which is much better than him holding back whimpers of pain. I guess he gets chronic migraines or something, but whatever it was, it seemed like an almost normal occurrence, especially from his dads reaction. I shift enough to get Sollux's phone out of my pocket and unlock it, finding that a few people have been trying to contact him. Thank god he had put the thing on silent. Among them was my mom, which I quickly text her telling her that I couldn't talk at the moment and closed out of the chat.

Gamzee had also tried to text him, but I didn't bother answering him, I'm sure he would understand why. Then there was an unknown number, which I just left alone because who knows?

Glancing at the time, it was nearing seven o'clock, meaning that I had sat here with Sollux for almost three hours. Jeez. That kind of gave me time to think about stuff though, my thoughts somehow traveled back to the nightmare Sollux had been having last night, he didn't seem like the type to have nightmares but the one last night seemed pretty bad. He had sounded scared after all. I resolved to ask him about it once he woke up again.

I look down at him, a smile twitching at the edge of my lips. He had a ridiculously concentrated look on his face for someone that was asleep, and his eyebrows kept twitching as he mumbled things under his breath. I tried to decipher what he was saying, but all the words seemed to slur together so I gave up after a bit. I realize I was still threading my fingers through his hair, so I stop and sit back, feeling a bit creeper-like as I watch him sleep.

Yay more aimless thought time.

Before I can get to deep into my own head, I hear Sollux mumble something that actually makes sense, so I feel my ears flicker in an attempt to catch what he's saying.

"Turn the light off..."

What.

I frown as I lean forward again, seeing that Sollux was wincing in his sleeping state, a hint of pain etched into his features once more.

"Shoosh, it's completely pitch dark in here," I sooth, beginning to brush my fingers through his hair once more. He just frowns and mutters again, but now I'm only able to catch a few words until he falls completely silent.

"Don't...understand..." Don't understand what?

"Bad...happen" What happened that was so bad?

"Stop him," is the last thing he says before curling up enough that he falls off my lap. This makes me even more worried, he sounds like a fucking predictor or some shit.

"Shoosh, it's fine, just sleep," I murmur, mulling over what he said while carding my fingers through his hair. Although now I'm not pinned down anymore so I move from the bed to kneel on the floor, although continuing to calm him down. When he continues to stay silent for a bit more than twenty minutes, I slowly pull away and stand, freezing to make sure he doesn't freak out or anything before as quiet as humanly possible, stepping out of his room.

I let out the breath I had been holding and make my way to the kitchen, I had sure as hell earned myself a cup of tea. Thelm is standing by the counter, reading some sort of book while chewing on some licorice.

"Whats up with Sollux, does he get chronic fucking migraines or something?" I ask him, speaking quietly even though Sollux most likely couldn't hear us.

"Yeah, they I wasn't too surprised, he hadn't had one in a few weeks so I knew he was going to curl up and die sometime," He says sort of offhandedly. I stare at him in shock while he continues, "And we all get them, it's in the family or something, although Sollux gets them the worse. He usually gets violent, I'm shocked he didn't try to hurt you," He shrugs, taking a bite out of the candy.

"And there's nothing that can help with these?!" I exclaim, grabbing my tea and taking a sip out of it, wincing when I burn my tongue.

"Well, they try, but nothing really helps, it's almost impossible to get to sleep, and all you can really do is lie there and try not to scream," he comments sympathetically, nodding a bit before reading his book again.

"Guess it was hell for him in school today, why didn't you just let him stay home if you knew he was going to have one though?" I accuse, glaring lightly at him.

"Because, sometimes he has to deal with it," He replies quietly, "Plus you were there to help him, so I wasn't worried."

A blush spreads across my cheeks and I fall silent as I drink my tea. I hoped he didn't notice, although he most likely did because he seemed to pay attention to details.

"Did he talk in his sleep?" His dad asks, breaking the silence that had fallen over the two of us. I jerk my gaze up to meet his , noticing for the first time that his eyes were a light electric blue color.

"Yeah, only a few words though, but what he said was weird," I frown, returning my gaze to the mug holding my coffee.

"Don't pay it any mind, he does that alot, usually it's just gibberish," Thelm shrugs again, then falls silent. I feel as if I'm dismissed, so I take my tea and a piece of bread back to Sollux's room, quietly shutting the door. When I turn to look at Sollux, I see he's sitting up and attempting to glare at me. And when I say attempt, I say it because his eyes are almost totally shut, concealing his bi-colored irises.

I carefully begin to set my mug on the floor, but he somehow dives forward and pins me to the wall, my head making a dull thunk as his hand tightens around my throat. I now understand what his dad meant when he said he was often violent.

"Hey, let...go," i gasp, trying to pry his fingers away, or at least to the point that I could breathe. His gaze is still lowered, but his face is practically emotionless, excluding the tears still streaking down his cheeks. His grip loosens slightly, but not enough for me to move away.

"It's ok Sollux, just back off," I say again, feeling him falter and his hand now rests at the base of my throat. Then he takes a step back, letting his arms fall to his sides , keeping his gaze on the ground.

Before I can move again he just sort of falls, sitting cross-legged and burying his face in his hands, quiet sobs hitching his shoulders. He mumbles something, so I kneel in front of him and brush his bangs back from his forehead. He barely responds to it, just pulls away and tries to hide even more.

"Shh, it's ok," I murmur worriedly, re-adjusting my legs so my knees are touching his. He continues to sit there sobbing until I sigh and pull his hands away from his face, seeing his tear-stained face. Brushing the few tears still traveling down his face, i try to get him to look at me.

"Come on, calm down ok," I soothe, giving up and tugging him into a hug because simple hair brushing wasn't working. He stiffens before seemingly giving up, resting his hean on my shoulder, gripping at my shoulders like I was his lifeline.

I'm honestly unsure how long he basically clings to me, but we basically sit there until he somewhat falls asleep, probably exhausted from first trying to kill me then bawling his eyes out.  
I hesitantly shift to begin standing, he mumbles something as I try to pick him up. Which fails pretty badly, because hes so much taller and it's hard to get him upright enough to move him over to the bed, where he sort of falls over and curls up.

I watch him bury his head under his pillow, then pull the covers up past his head. Honestly, I had no idea what to do with myself now. Now that I was done comforting and he was hopefully asleep. So I check his phone, which I still had in my pocket, and see that my mom had responded, and that Gamzee had tried to talk to us again.

TC: HeY iS sOlBrO aLrIgHt  
TC: YoU hAvEnT mOtHeRfUcKiNg ReSpOnDeD  
TC: mOtHeRfUcKeR?  
TA: he's fine  
TA: if i want to fucking talk to you i'll fucking contact you later  
-TA is now disconnected-

From Karkat  
To Sollux

i just wanted to tell you that silas is going away on a job for awhile  
probably a few weeks  
so youll be able to come home

love you karcrab

I stare at the screen for a few moments before grinning widely, about to tell Sollux before remembering that it would be a better idea to just let him sleep. I move over to the computer as I respond to my mom, telling her I would be calling her tomorrow because Sollux was sleeping. To which she responds an alright, so I click on the computer and find a pair of headphones.

I thanked whoever the hell thought it would be a good idea to put movies on the internet as I open Serendipity. I swear that will probably be one of my favorite movies of all time. And soon enough I'm switching between watching movies and scrolling through YouTube, watching some of the most random videos that probably didn't relate to the subject I didn't originally look up.

Then I realize it's five am and I've stayed up all night again, which I knew I would regret soon enough. Looking back at Sollux, I'm glad to see that he's just sleeping, not like scared or trying to rip apart the pillow or something.

Standing, I stretch and hear my back pop, which I just sigh at. Sitting almost unmoving for about six hours probably wasn't the best idea, but oh well. I leave the room because now that I knew they had tea I instantly want a nice cup, because the least it would do would wake me up. Of course it's creepy as hell, the silence put me on edge even more. Once I walk into the living room, I have a mini-freakout when I see someone lying down on the couch. Then I realize that it's just Mituna and I probably look like an idiot.

Tea is probably the only reason I'm alive, I would've otherwise just collapsed from exhaustion or something. So now I lean against the counter mess with Sollux phone, mostly out of boredom, and another hour passes, and Thelm walks into the kitchen looking like a grown-up version of Sollux immediately out of bed. I use alot of my willpower not to laugh, especially when he scowls at me.

"How the hell are you up thith early?" He mutters, grabbing his own cup for coffee.

"Who said I ever went to sleep?" I respond, drinking out of the cup and enjoying the nice steam before looking up to see him grinning at me.

"Tho you calmed him down right?"

"yeah, seriously, how the hell did you use to deal with him?" I ask, honestly wondering how he dealt with his headaches before because dear god it took alot of shooshing and hugging and attempting to calm down before he finally collapsed from exhaustion.

"Mituna usually helped him, although another majority of the time he just has to deal with them on his own," He mumbles, losing his lisp once he wakes up a bit more.

"Damn..." I mutter, letting the silence fall over us again, and after grabbing some toast, I retreat back to Sollux's room, retreating back to the computer once more.

Now I'll just wait for Sollux to wake up.

**End note:**

**Dropping a review would be wonderful, I don't care if it's just a "you did good", or you know "wow nice going, they sucked" . Although guests, always specify yourselves, it gets annoying having to reply to the "same" person multiple times. **

**And do any of you guys like coffee? I was just wondering that as I proof-read. I personally don't like it, it gives me a headache, and I prefer tea over it. **

**I hope you guys enjoyed the fluff I painstakingly tried to incorporate into the chapter, I hope it's not too awkward :P Fuck it's probably ooc as shit...damn sorry. **

**SO I realize I sortof began talking to you you guys through Karkat...fuck. I was watching danisnotonfire while typing to keep myself awake...so if you know who he is (which i hope you do) you know the way he explains his stories...**

**And no joke it's almost three am while I'm posting this so although it's short and stuff, i hope I didn't fail to badly and i hope you enjoy :)**

**~Disclaimer~ I own nothing **


	17. If The Boys That Chase Your Hips

**A/N**  
**Ok there's alot of stuff written but seriously, read it ALLLLLLLL. ::::P **

**Firstly, HOPY SHIT I'M SOOOOOOOO SORRY :"( **  
**I was trying so freaking hard to update and gollush I feel so freaking bad for making you guys wait so long :( **  
**But things happened, school is so much more hectic**  
**I *actually* have to study now, isn't that horrible? **  
**and in literally all my classes I get homework everyday :D *muffled sobbing* but I can most of the time get in done in core+, unless if we're doing fucking "team building" which is the stupidest exercise fucking created.**  
**Ugh, taking a language class is a bear, German, yay (It is fun but it's also kinda difficult)**  
**But damn, last time I updated was 7/22, so it's been...2 weeks and 4 days **  
**I feel so bad...**

**Secondly, Well when I asked you guys to review you really did! I got 27 reviews for the chapter :) That beat the former record of most reviews (for chapter 8) which was 19, which is what I was aiming to beat...yes it was a weird thing and I won't do it again...**  
**It made me happy alright! :B**

**Thirdly, if I did not personally PM any of you new people a personal "WELCOME", I apologize but my email folder got re-organized and I didn't want to send something twice or anything, but yeah...**

**Fourthly (god so much stuff to cover), My spellcheck was being an ass so if there's something wrong somewher I apologize greatly, but unless if it's a terrible mistake I'm not going to fix it till later. **  
**too much shit to deal with at the moment. **  
**It took all of my willpower just to type the chapter up. **

**Thanks to**: 333stepha, massproducingwhiteflags, Wolfen Artist of Hetalia, Scetchbook12, Scourgesisterswerehere, krikanalo, Death by Violet, triple baka, More-then-enough, chibiromano22, Obsessivefangirl0, mellosgoggledgamer, . , America96, Kaycee Columbell, iceytoshiro, ThePaleSister, Lauren Chamberlain, Lost Phantom, Iggy-BlindnProud, Cheshire of a smile, witnessmebeabsolutelyflawless, Zayn noob, **For Reviewing**

**Welcome to the madness:** triple baka, More-then-enough, ValkyrieVantas, The KuroCat Raider, rainbowOnlooker, supremebunnylord, forgottenCompendium, Iggy-BlindnProud, PotatOS55, LivingInFantasyEveryday, Zayn noob, witnessmebeabsolutelyflawless, Mustache-Giraffe,CoryLee93,

**ThaneOfStorm**: Actually nope. They're trying to make it year round, so it'll go from August till June or so :/

**Tropica**: Well, Sollux doesn't have psionic powers :P Unless if you meant it as instead of powers he gets headaches in which you are correct :) And yes, tea with honey is the best thing ever :)

**opTr**: I can't find the video, perhaps you can tell me the title and creator instead?

**psYchObItch**: Glad you liked the cuddle-fluffs! :D And yes, school does suck, but I haven't done a thing over the summer besides prepare for an orchestra audition so...I just sorta slap myself to wake up, or slam my head into the pillow a few times, since I can't have coffee :P And yes, tea is quite soothing, I like to drink it while watching movies

**poppyPajama:** Thank you! And I'm glad you like it so much :D

**Abigail Johnson**: I'm glad you liked my burst of creativity, that was the result of me staying up too late XD

**Krysus C:** FUCK YEAH CHOCOLATE MILK!  
And glad you liked it :)

** I hope you enjoy it and I'll see you at the bottom of the page**

/

It was rather late by the time Sollux woke up; I only realized because he fell out of bed. Seeing him out of the corner of my eye, I jerked my head around, resulting in the headphones being pulled out of my ears. I watch as he sits up and rubs at his very mussed up hair, slowly looking around before his gaze falls on me.

"KK? What time ith it?" He slurs, looking really confused.

"Almost 10am, I thought you were going to sleep forever," I reply, laughing lightly at his expression. Plus his hair was completely ridiculous, it stuck up in all different directions while still a bit of it was lying down.

"Oh...whereth my phone?" He asks, looking a bit more awake as he stumbles over to his bedside table. I watch him look around in confusion for a few minutes, for my own amusement, before tossing it at him. He barely catches it and looks even more confused before realizing what it was.

"Is your head ok now?" I question, watching him scroll through a few his phone for a few minutes before he replies.

"Yeah, I'm ok now, did I do anything weird?" he looks up at me, and i frown slightly.

"Other than try to suffocate me and starting to sob, nope, nothing out of the ordinary," I reply, then watch his expression sadden into guilt.

"Are you alright? I didn't hurt you did I?" He says anxiously, quickly walking over to me and stooping down to my level, grabbing my shoulders and looking closely at me. I stare wide eyed at him until he moves away.

"I'm fine, you didn't hurt me at all, do you not remember?" I tilt my head curiously as he removes his hands from my shoulders and rubs his hands over his face.

"I can never remember much after my headacheth, the latht thing I can clearly recollect ith coming home from thcool, then I blank out..." he looks nervous as he moves back to sit on the edge of his bed, not meeting gazes with me.

I sigh, "Don't be so mopey about it, I'm fine and as is everyone else."

"But I'm thtill thorry," He says sadly, glancing up at me with eyes that seemed to convey innocence even though I knew they had known more pain than should be possible. They reminded me of Nepeta's eyes in that sense.

Nepeta.

Mom.

"Oh my fucking god how did I did I forget!" I do a brilliant double face-palm combo before turning back to Sollux, "My mom told me last night that my dad is going away on a trip, so I can go back home!" A wide smile is spread across my face as I gauge his reaction.

It takes a moment before a slow smile spreads across his face, "Really!? Tho...you don't need to crash here anymore? That'th awethome!"

"You really hate me that much?" I joke , bumping against his shoulder before standing. I turn toward the door and begin to walk out, hearing him follow me.

"I could never hate you KK," Sollux protests, his socked feet silent but his voice alerted me to his presence. Once we leave the room Thelm appearifies in front of us, he takes a long look at Sollux before leaning down a bit to look at his eyes closely.

"You're ok now right?" Is all he asks, straightening before taking a step back.

"Yeah, gueth it wath one of thothe headacheth," Sollux answers calmly, barely even blinking. I was staring at the two of them, probably with a weird look on my face.

"Alright then, I'm leaving in a few minutes, Mituna's still crashed on the couch," Thelm grins at us, winking, then grabs his keys and jacket before leaving. I send a glance at Sollux but he doesn't notice and moves into the kitchen, not even bothering to look in the living room.

"When do you want to head home, I'll drive you whenever," Sollux says after making himself some toast and moving to sit on the counter. I was shocked from the mutual silence and I only stare at him before I think up a reply.

"Oh, I don't care, I guess I should call my mom though, phone," I finally reply, holding out my hand until he hands me the electronic device. I walk out of the kitchen and begin to head toward the living room before changing my mind and walking outside, it was slightly cloudy with a breeze, but the air was rather humid. I huffed out a breath as I listened to the phone ring before it was picked up.

"Hi Karkat," My mom's cheerful voice greets me and I smile softly before greeting her.

"Morning mom, sorry about last night, Sollux was asleep and I couldn't talk without him waking up."

"It's alright Karkrab, I understand perfectly, I assume you are calling about your dad correct?"

My breath hitches for a moment before I respond, "Uh yeah, so I can come home right? For how long?"

"Don't sound so nervous, he's supposed to be away from anywhere from two weeks to a month, but I've talked to him ok? You should be fine," Her voice is calming and my nerves are instantly soothed.

"Alright mom, Sollux can drive me over later, oh, does Nepeta need picked up?" The last question is an afterthought, I had almost forgotten she had gone to a friends house.

"No, her friend, Terezi? Is supposed to be dropping her off, no need to worry about her either,"

I must look like an idiot smiling at the grass in front of me, but I don't care as I answer, "Alright mom, I'll be back later, love you,"

"Love you too Karcrab,"

I end the call and slide the phone back into my pocket, staring at the ground in front of me for a few more minutes before chuckling to myself and heading back inside. Sollux is sitting in the living room talking to Mituna, and not wanting to interrupt, I don't announce my presence.

"-it was that again, with you, and then it changed, it wath...kk...and I couldn't thtop it I could only watch ath...ath..." He seems reluctant to continue, ad Mituna seems intrigued as his little brother stares down at his hands. I wonder what this is about, but I do my best to look like I had just walked in and hadn't been eavesdropping once Mituna speaks.

"Thollux, tell me about it later," the elder Captor says, causing Sollux's gaze to jerk up, then it lands on me. His face seems to flush lightly before flicking back down to stare at his hands.

"Hi KK, tho when do you want me to drive you?" he asks quickly, standing but not meeting my gaze. Mituna stands with a goofy grin and walks out, patting Sollux's shoulder on the way. I hear him retreat and don't answer until I know he's gone.

"I don't care, my mom doesn't expect me until later," I give him a dubious look, "Why are you so flustered?"

He scowls at me but remains silent;we have a silent staredown, where I notice he had put in his contacts before I end up sighing. I wasn't used to being the one breaking so I just stood there silently before coughing once.

"Fine, don't tell me, but you can go ahead and drive me if you want, I should probably...talk to my mom and stuff," I finish lamely, running a hand through my hair.

"...ok, go get your stuff, I'll grab the keys."

While grabbing my belongings (the few things I had, since I was wearing my clothes, so basically my homework), I ponder why Sollux had avoided the question, especially since he said my name. It seemed like he was talking his dream, or something that happened in his migraine induced stupor.

I'll get it out of him eventually.

Walking back out, I see that he had remained in his sleep-rumpled clothes, but he had grabbed two shoes, not matching shoes mind you, but one black Converse, and one white Vans. I cover my mouth to try and conceal my laughter, but he notices and glares at me, sticking out his tongue and walking out the door, leaving me to follow.

The two of us were silent the entirety of the ride, and he only said an awkward bye when I get out in front of our apartment. In response I do an awkward half wave, then swiftly run into the lobby, sending a glance at the sleeping receptionist before taking the stairs to the fifth floor.

I was still apprehensive, and especially on edge, but thankfully my mom was standing outside the door, wearing her old baby blue, light green, and easter yellow striped dress. A wide pink headband was atop her head, and a soft smile that didn't appear often was on her face. Brushing a strand of light blonde hair off her forehead, she takes a few steps forward and hugs me.

I smile and softly return the hug before pulling away. She smelled of paint, that made me even happier, she must've gotten enough out of her funk to begin painting again. She probably got anoyed enough to take out her annoyance and fear on the canvas as she used to say when she talked to me.

"I'm sorry, I really am Karkat, you know how Silas can get, and sometimes he just...I'm just so sorry-," She begins to say softly, but I cut her off.

"I know, it's dad, not saying I forgive him, but I understand," I respond, ranting in my head how much Silas is a terrible father and I still don't understand why my mom doesn't ditch him.

"Yes...oh, Nepeta brought her friends over here, just as a warning," she says, smiling. I now notice the squeals and laughter from the open door. I sigh but smile fondly and nod.

"Thanks, I'm just going to shower and stuff," I say, striding inside to throw my stuff into my bedroom and immediately heading into the bathroom before Nepeta could realize I was back home.

LINEBREAK

By the time I got my hair dried and clean clothes on it was around noon and Nepeta had noticed my presence. With her catty skills, that I'd gotten used to but still surprised me, she knew exactly when I was decent enough to throw open the door and tackle-pounce me with a happy squeal.

"Hi Karkitty!"

"Ugh, hi Nep, I kinda need to put a shirt on," I groan, picking her up under her arms and setting her upright before moving over to the dresser and grabbing a shirt. From the corner of my eye I spotted a familiar head of red hair, and I smile a bit.

"You just left your friends outside Nep? That's cruel," I chuckle, pulling the grey t-shirt over my head then turning to the door to watch Nepeta skip over and usher them in. I didn't care, not like my room had much anyway. All it was is old pictures, that if I didn't keep Silas would get rid of, peeling wallpaper and a few stray CD cases. All my clothes were kept tucked away, guitar was on top of my bed, where I had left it, laptop...under my bed for some reason. Brushing that off I watch Terezi stride over to my bed and sit down no it, a shit-eating grin on her young face.

"Smells so bland in here Karkles, is this place even decorated?" She says with a mocking smile.

"Obvviously not Ter, this place mildly horrifies me," the mini prick, oops, I mean Eridan sneers, waving a...purple cape around with his hand. Feferi giggles and brushes a strand of hair behind her ear.

"It's not that bad Eridan, it could just use some work, Nepeta's is colorful though, I like her room better!"

I feel myself sighing as I shake my head, "I'm a guy, I'm not obligated to decorate my room much, especially since I have no money," I stick out my tongue at Eridan and laugh at his childish glare. It was difficult to take him seriously when he was wearing a purple cape and vertical striped pants and a sweater that was way to big for him.

"God you landwwellers annoy me," he mutters, tossing his head a bit.

"Eri, you don't need to continue with you character," Feferi giggles, making the boy blush a tad, "and be nice."

"Oh! Wait we should continue playing! I just wanted to say hi Kakitty," Nepeta says with a large grin, hugging around my neck.

"Well hi, now go play," I chuckled, patting the top of her head, between the ears of her cat-hat.

"Nice to see you again Karkat," Feferi chimes as she walks out, smiling back at me, I nod and watch them file out, waiting until I hear them go into Nepeta's room before slowly moving to shut my door.

Flopping back on my bed, I stare at the ceiling, mapping out the patters while listening to the outside sounds. My mind wanders to everything and nothing and I feel it's going to be a rather long weekend.

I must've fallen asleep, ( i mean, I didn't get any sleep last night and I was lying on my bed-which was a bad idea anyway) because when I'm jolted awake my heart starts to pound in fear before I realize where I am. I always wake up confused after naps. Stabalizing my heartrate, I hear my phone buzzing, which I assumed was what woke me up.

"yo," I sigh, hand-combing my hair back from my face and looking at the clock, squinting untiil I'm able to make out the time. It was around six or so.

"Sup Karbro, Solbro told us you'd all up and be back home, by the way, Tavbro and I are all up an' chillin' at his place, thought we'd invite you along," Gamzee drawls, his voice sending a jolt of awakeness into my brain.

"Oh, uh I don't know, let me ask my mom," I respond tiredly, heaving myself to my feet to stumble to the door. Hand hovering over the doorknob, I pause, fingers twitching slightly. Wincing, I bring my phone up to my ear.

"I'd rather not guys, maybe tomorrow, bye," I say quickly, hanging up and putting the device on silent. I move back to my bed and collapse onto it, falling oncemore into the arms of sleep.

**So I've started school and yeah, inspiration will either be slow or in small bursts, I'm glad to say I've figured out the ending, but to get there...I'm sure I'll have fun *evil grin***  
**Ugh. as you can already tell, updates will be slow, hell technically I should be studying right now but fluck it. Plus the weather is being bitchy and bad weather=headaches and headaches=slower work. **  
**Isn't school wonderful! *sarcasm duly noted***

**I just want to go sleep :"( **

**Enough complaining, so question for the chapter, do you guys get confused when you wake up from naps? (if you take naps) And if you don't take naps, wow. Just I don't know, complain about something. **

**And I know, I could've made this longer, or ended it on a nice cliffy, or done something else. **

**But I'm just so dnoe with everything. **

**the weekend will be a blessing **

***whispers* two more days of torture**

**Anyway, yeah review and all that, I'll hopefully get a chapter up sooner (but I wouldn't count on it,) **

**Dammit most of the chapter is A/N...SORRY :'(**

**I'm so disappointed in this chapter. **

**~Disclaimer~ I OWN NOTHING~**


	18. canjustgofindtheirwayhomeYouca ndigsodee...

**Thanks to:** Lauren Chamberlain, Captainforkz, Starhoshi, Obsessivefangirl03 , Zayn noob, krikanalo, LolitaPrincessLove, MissMakaraCaptor, Kaycee Columbell, 333stepha, iceytoshiro, Scetchbook123, Tsuki-shining09, Leopardtail, Lost Phantom , PuppyKatGirl, America96

**WELCOME TO THE MADNESS**: Starhoshi, RebornKawaii, Tsuki-shining09, FanficFinatic2, region-discontinued, Bitblondetoday, BananaLipbalm,

**ThaneOfStorm**: I know, horrifying right? and Yeah, I'm working on it! I'm using inspiration (what little I have) from my own school experience a bit to get everything working...probably not very well but dammit :P

**Candyblooded: I** know the feel bro! It takes me like five minutes to remember anything about myself, including my name :P

**That Someone**: Glad you like it! And psh, it takes alot to creep me out, plus I can be plenty creepy when need-be ;]

**Abigail Johnson:** Shoutouts (I know) make people happy so I usually do them even though it takes a bit to type up or respond :) Even if I'm not happy I always hope to make someone else a bit happier.  
Psh, I have a life, it's this nice red and white color, it kind of resembles a mushroom! ((XD aka mario reference)  
And yeah I've met a few others who type like you (who aren't even Homestucks) so I'm used to it :) Glad you liked it, was it SO SUGOI! XD

**psYchObItch**: oooh, sounds worse than PE. It's been humid as hell and we were threatened with running outside. Plus the school is unevenly split between cold and hot. (Ex: Warm science room, cold US history, cold Orchestra and Cafeteria, semi-warm Math, Warm Gym/cold health room, warm English, and semi-cold Media. And hot German room))  
I was probably channeling my inner frustrations into their emotions. (wow that sounded deep).  
-Dude, I Invited the rants, I bet I'm just trying to see if anyone has the same feelings as me...

**godtierjade**: Ah, Danke! And yeah, school is a bear, but it can (kinda not really) be ok sometimes

**So uh yeah, I apologize for the long aforementioned authors note ^^" But A/N's are good ways to rant without actually ranting...**

**THAT MADE NO SENSE ASDFHJKL; I apologize :P**

**Uh yeah I was actually able to update earlier than I expected :D **

**Oh to you curious people who've asked me before, I got a tumblr recently, my page (or whateverthehellitscalledihavenoideahowtoworkityet) is rosesofenvy should I link it? I don't know if you could see it ...**

**Here: rosesofenvy . tumblr **

**if it's there just remove spaces and all that**

**I might end up posting stories on there, most will probably be one-shots, and I will basically re-blog stuff :D**

**But I hope you enjoy the chapter and I'll see you at the bottom of the page!**

* * *

By the time I wake up again i can easily tell I've slept more than I should've, because before falling asleep it was dark out, and it's now obviously morning. Sitting up in alarm I grab my phone and see I've gotten a bunch of messages. Mouth twitching, I avoid those to see what time it was when I was called by Sollux...around 9:35pm. Son of a bitch.

Calculating in my head, if I had fallen asleep sometime around 11 in the morning, that means ten hours of sleep right there, and adding the time I slept till now, which it was almost 8am, that was...another 11 hours.

Hopy shit a perfect total of twenty-one hours of sleep.

I'm not even sure if that's healthy...

I was distracted by yet another text and I groan as I flip open the text inbox, now it reads:

**33 Unread Messages **

_Blink_

**34 Unread Messages **

JEEZUS

[carcinoGeneticist is now Online]

CG:...  
CG: WHY THE EVERLOVING FUCK DID YOU TEXT ME SO MUCH BEE BRAIN

I scowl at the 20 messages from Sollux and see the ten others are from Gamzee

CG: HEY JUGGALO ASSHOLE  
CG: CALM  
CG: YOUR  
CG: GODDAMN  
CG:ASS  
CG: DOWN

[TA has responded]

TA: oh my god kk you were 2tarting two worry u2  
TA: diid you 2eriiou2ly 2leep that long?  
CG: MAYBE I DID ASSHOLE AND MAYBE I DIDN'T  
TA: ...  
TA: iin other word2 you diid  
TA: diid you 2leep at all the niight ii had a headache?  
TA:...  
TA: kk?  
CG: NO OK  
CG: I DIDN'T  
CG: AND NOW I PROBABLY WON'T SLEEP FOR THE NEXT FEW DAYS  
TA: that2 not healthy kk  
TA: you 2houldn't do that 2ort of 2tuff  
CG: NOT MY FAULT ASSHOLE  
CG: ANYWAY, NOW THAT I'M READING IN THE OTHER MESSAGES  
CG: WHY WERE YOU SO ANXIOUS TO CONTACT ME?  
CG: I THOUGHT YOU WERE AT GAMZEE'S OR SOME SHIT  
CG: SPEAKING OF THE ASSHOLE, i'M GOING TO ANSWER HIM

TC: wHoA bRo  
TC: i WaS jUsT aLl Up AnD woRrIeD aBoUt A mOtHeRfUcKeR  
TC: cOuRsE, sOlBrO wAs MoRe WoRrIeD  
CG: I'M TALKING TO HIM RIGHT NOW  
CG: SO I'LL JUST GO ANSWER HIM  
CG: UNO FUCKING MOMENTO

TA: yeah, and we iinviited you along two remember, but then you ju2t 2aiid no and hung up and after ii  
TA: 2orry  
TA:we  
TA: triied calliing you agaiin, you diidn't an2wer 2o yeah  
TA: we got a biit worriied  
CG: I WAS JUST SLEEPING AND I'M FINE  
CG:PLEASE TELL GAMZEE TO CALM HIS CLOWN ASS DOWN OK?  
TA: he ii2 calm now kk  
CG: ...  
CG: OK  
CG: I'M GOING TO EAT NOW  
CG: DON'T ANSWER THIS JACKASS

I set my phone down on my bed and stride over to the mirror, looking at my hopeless mop of hair that was doing the weird spiky-curl that only occurred when I slept for awhile. A scowl is settled on my face and I make an effort to change it to an indifferent line.

It's rather quiet in the apartment, so I don't bother to straighten up my appearance any. Walking into the kitchen, I grab various materials and prepare myself a batch of pancakes, humming a bit to myself until I sit down at our now cluttered table. I push aside a small pile of watercolors before sitting down, practically inhaling the few pancakes I made myself before I realize it's almost completely silent.

Glancing around I notice the note taped to the fridge and I leave the table to look at it.

"Had to take Nepeta to her friends, then going shopping, -mom"

A smile tugs at the edges of my mouth at the paint splatter next to "mom", it was no wonder so many people had nick-named her "Mrs. Paint", somehow she always had paint on her, and got it everywhere else.

Shaking my head I decide to lounge in the silence, by shoving the rest of the pancakes down my throat and moving quickly to my room and turning on my Xbox. Only a few minutes later my phone is on silent, my room is completely dark besides the tv screen with it's dim glow, and a controller is clutched in my hands.

How else am I supposed to spend a Sunday?...or whatever hell day it is.

* * *

"Hey Karkat you awake?"

I'm pulled out of my game-playing mindset when my mom opens the door. It takes me a moment before I realize it was her, and I have enough of my wits to pause the game.

"Yeah, I didn't mean to sleep for-fucking-ever, it just sort of happened," I say with a small grin, standing to flip on my lamp. She's holding bags of groceries, but smiles softly at me.

"I'll be making dinner, it'll be ready in about half an hour, Nep is at Terezi's again," She tosses over her shoulder as she turns around to walk to the kitchen. I look at my clock and nod at the amount of time that had passed. I decide to check my phone and I see that I had been texted a few more times, but those were only from Gamzee, although there was one from Sollux.

I still don't feel like talking to either of them, so I just stretch the kink out of my back and jump onto my bed, sitting cross-legged and grabbing my laptop. I realize I haven't really gone through my blog in awhile so I power it up and start to scroll through the websites, seeing I have multiple messages and literally hundreds of posts.

I settle back in my pillows for a while of blogging.

-  
"Dinner Karkat!" My mom announces, and I barely glance up as she walks into my room, setting down the plate next to me.

"Thanks," I mumble, continuing to scroll and watching her out of the corner of my eyes.

"Your face isn't that beaten up."

I jerk my head up to look at her; a sad expression is on her face.

"I'm just a pretty fast healer," I say softly, sort of remembering that I was still covered with bruises that were still twinging with pinpricks of pain.

"I guess I should be thankful for that...but..." She trails off, not meeting my gaze.

"I'm fine, you don't have to worry about me," I say quickly, hoping that my tone is convincing enough, although it doesn't seem so.

"Yes...I realize...as you've told me before...well, sorry to get back into that topic, enjoy dinner," Her bright smile flits across her face before she spins around and walks out the room once more, letting the door click shut behind her.

I shake my head slightly and return back to my laptop, enjoying the food she had brought.

* * *

[Timeskip of all timeskip because I'm a lazy motherglubber]

It's now Wednesday and we only have a week and two days until our performance in arts class. School has been as long and tedious as usual, and to be truthful I'm only forcing myself to go because of arts class. The other groups have already made good leeway on their projects, our group just likes to observe them practice their lines or throw paint-splattered paintbrushes at each other. They had actually gotten pretty creative, although one other group would also be doing a song, in a totally different genre from ours though.

We're the only group that hasn't practiced in class, we've only worked on our individual parts or gone to Tavros's place. We were pretty good if I do say so myself, although there's that one part that I wish we could time better, but there's always going to be a few issues with it.

Right now Sollux and I were discussing the homework for Computer Aps, which was to create a code, and I was in the most subtle way possible asking him to help me out.

"KK there's no way you can have it configured like thith," he insists with a frown, tapping the paper which I had jotted the code onto.

"Who says I can't! And if you're so smart then you fix it for me," I retort, throwing a pen at his head and leaning back in my chair, crossing my arms defiantly. Sollux sticks his tongue out mockingly and turns to the paper, scribbling something before balling it up and tossing it at my head, nailing me between the eyes.

"ow what the hell!" I yelp, slamming my feet on the ground to prevvent myself from falling backwards. Unfolding the paper I scowl.

"What. The. Hell."

"I wrote it in German, I realithe that you wanted me to do your homework for you, now come on, I dare you to gueth it all," He smirks at me, blue eyes glimmering with mischief.

"oh it's a motherfucking challenge now Bee-brain, and by hell will I turn it down," I grin evilly at him, quickly scanning the room before jumping up and running over to a group working on their art project.

"Hey Calliope, can you translate this for me?" I ask quickly, feeling Sollux's curious gaze on my back. She smiles at me and nods, using the stick of charcoal to write the translation below. She had lived with her brother in Germany until recently, she had moved over the summer and Roxy had introduced her to me.

"Here you go."

I take it and run back to the table.

"HA! I WIN YOU SMUG ASS!" I shout triumphantly, getting a few looks and giggles as I slam the paper onto the table.

"THAT WATH CHEATING!" He protests, standing up to lean over the table and glare at me.

"You didn't say a damn thing about getting help," I sneer, meeting his gaze with an equal amount of smugness.

"Thtill doethn't mean you can cheat," He glowers, and I can see the slight tint of his red eye behind the blue contact. I lose my defensiveness and start laughing, earning a confused glare from him.

"I still won, so you can just suck it THOLLUCKTH!"

* * *

**A/N: yay a decently timed update!**

**Hopy shit terrible ending but I need to get off the computer.**

**Once again, spellcheck isn't working right, plus my typing has been really weird lately so I might've missed something when I was proof-reading (which I was only able to skim over because oh-shit I have a German test tomorrow)**

**So I realize I haven't really been specifying the games and shit that the guys play because I don't want to say anything that wouldn't really...fit with the story. I don't really have any games (Guitar Hero and a PS2 is all i have) But I do watch Rooster Teeth and some other Let's Plays and etc. **  
**ANYWAY, do you guys have any like recommendations to what kind of games you could see the guys playing? Because I will most likely have another scene where they all play video games again. **

**also...I casually checked how many views my story had gotten and **

**HOPYMOTHERFUCKINGSHIT IT HAS OVER 11,400 VIEWS OHMYDEARMIRTHFULMESSIAHSI'MSOGLUBBINGHAPPYRIGHTNOW !**

**nd yeah, I'm probably just barely squeaking over the 2,000 word count, ^_~" But I did my best!**

**oh yeah, and I kinda realize I'm inserting alot of Homestuck characters, I probably won't add anymore but is that annoying? **

**uh...HOPE YOU ENJOYED DROPPING A REVIEW WOULD BE LOVELY AND I WILL HOPEFULLY UPDATE IN A MANNERLY TIME!**

**Disclaimer~ I don't own anything but the plot~**


	19. forscarsyouneverknewyourmindwa sdark

**Thanks to:** krikanalo, FanficFinatic2, Tsuki-shining09,ThaneOfStorm, Brit98, chibiromano22, KarkatIsChickenOrzo, Death by Violet, Wolfen Artist of Hetalia , Obsessivefangirl03, Grey Seas, Bitblondetoday, Starhoshi ,LolitaPrincessLove, iceytoshiro, Zayn noob, America96 , Scourgesisterswerehere, Scetchbook123, VampireNinjaPrincess1, SnowSuiiciide, ArtsyreaderVOI,

**Welcome to the madness**: Brit98, Grey Seas, Sapphirianna, Clouds of flames, artisticalyhopelessartist, , klmj01, randomhylian14, An Sinsear Crazy O Sreabh, TeamFreeGabriel, ArtsyreaderVOI,

**Abigail Johnson:** How awesome ^u^ (That's awesome that you're Swedish! And I'm used to people mis-spelling so :D) My sun sign...that's the plain zodiac correct? If so, I am a Virgo! I'm perfectly fine with sharing this as well, and don't worry about wasting my time! The longer the review the happier I am personally :D

**psYchobItch**: Yes! I kinda based it on my own frustrations on homework (and I asked a friend and they wouldn't help me so...) Augh, yeah, all of the school suckiness.  
Dramatic plotwists you say *evil smile* I have a few up my sleeve.  
OH MY FREAKING GOSH ILOVEYOUSOMUCHFORGIVINGMETHEIDEA!  
I'll totally do it  
actually that's what this chapter is :D :D :D :D :D

**Sara Underwood**: HOPY SHIT I MOTHERFUCKING LOVE ROOSTER TEETH AND RAGE QUIT! You're not not the only one so don't worry \(^_^)/ Michael is my Headcanon Karkat and Gavin is my Headcanon Eridan! I actually wrote a small one-shot called "Human Equivalents" if you want to check that out :)

**Tropica:** Yep, updates seem to be every 2 or so weeks now :P I've added a majority of them in! :D nd danke, I was considering Minecraft, so I will probably use it :)

**bio69**: HERE'S YOUR UPDATE BE HAPPY!

**SO GUYS**

**HI**

**I APOLOGIZE IF I DIDN"T PERSONALLY MESSAGE YOU A WELCOME OR IF I DIDN"T REPLY TO YOUR REVIEW MY EMAIL FOLDER GOT SCRAMBLED AND MY STORY ALMOST GOT DELETED BUT I SAVED IT. **

**This chapter (because hopy shit writers block) is Sollux's headache from his point of view :D Oh by the way I'm pretty much running on empty for ideas of things they can do until about...chapter 30 or so... well...maybe only chapter 25 but still I'm blanking.**

**Anything you can think of? It can merely be a suggestion of something you'd like to see these guys do.**

**OH on my tumblr I made a small explanaition about this AU, for now it's just the characters but I will probably end up adding more details as I think of them. here is the link: **

** : / / rosesofenvy . tumblr my AU**

**take out the spaces, and it's probably a bit of a read but if you wish to have a bit of background then it will certainly help :) **

**anyway, enjoy :) **

* * *

_It was one of those dreams again. Lucid of course, but even so I knew that I wouldn't be able to change the outcome. It never worked. _

I cowered around the corner of the doorway, hearing Mituna screaming at my dad, and my dad yelling back. I couldn't tell what was wrong, but a horrible feeling possessed me to watch. The space around the rooms was pitch black, a roiling mess that made my dream self scared to move past this point. My baggy yellow t-shirt swished when I took a hesitant step, and that's when the dream differed from my memories.

Mituna turned away from my dad and instead towards me. Electric blue eyes were ablaze with anger and within two steps he was standing in front of my younger self. I stare up at him with a fearful look, my dad is frozen in the background, and all I can do is let out a shout as I'm slammed into the wall.

"FUCKING HELL!"

I'm awake.

Fear is clouding my senses and I feel my hand connect with someone and it takes me another few seconds before the voice registers in my mind.

"KK?"

He growls at me and I can't quite tell what he says...my head's all blurry. I say the only thing my brain allows me to come up with:

"Bad dream...thorry KK..." I feel my consciousness fading and I'm stuck in the throes of sleep far to quickly.

Why did it change...somethings different.

* * *

I'm awakened by my dad...he's yelling at me but I can't even register the words because of the awful pounding in my head. I yelp as I fall out of bed, hitting the floor with a horrible thump.

I squint up at him, and there's a glimpse of pity in his expression as he helps me up, and I know it's going to be a bad day just from that moment. I rub my head a bit, but that only makes it worse.

Deithelm leaves and I slowly follow him, wishing I could stay home, but if I did I would most likely end up screaming the entire time. I don't want to freak out the neighbors like I did at the last town...

Karkat is smirking at me as I walk into the kitchen and an unbidden click goes through my head. I can feel myself snarl at him after I take some pills then I'm walking away. I'm not even totally sure what I said but I'm sure I'll regret it later.

I get dressed quickly, grabbing random clothing articles and sit myself in front of the computer, seeing if it will help. I plug in my earbuds and sit back, sensing Karkat come into the room, but I don't acknowledge him because I'm afraid I'll say something else to hurt him.

I'm able to somewhat block out the pain through my coding but then it's time to leave, and when I barely remember to put in my contacts before walking out to Karkat. I also sling the violin case over my shoulder, but I honestly doubted I would be playing today.

I hear him say something about not needing to pick up Nepeta so I just nod and quickly begin walking off. He's silent and I don't think I'd have to energy to speak in the first place so I don't even bother trying.

When the school comes into sight, I speed up and completely brush of Gamzee and Tavros, I'm sure Karkat would much rather talk to them anyway.

Students as well as teachers had heard about the fight and that was earning me looks, especially lingering on my lack of glasses and black eye, but I was thankful that no one attempted to approach me. Although when I walked past the guy I was fighting with I gave him a glare, which he returned.

The day blurred by, I told Rose that I wouldn't be able to do much today and she just nodded, so i did my best not to make much of a scene. She must've told the other teachers because none of them bothered me either. I skipped out on lunch, the noise and the food would've killed me. I ended up taking out my contacts that period, but thankfully enough I was able to keep from making eye contact with anyone. The worst class was Art, by far. Everyone was talking and it just made me want to cry.

I was worried when Karkat began talking to me, shaking my shoulder gently and speaking in a soft voice. When nothing clicks I lift my head up slowly, feeling my breath hitch in an attempt to hold back tears. Black dots flickered over my vision and I can barely concentrate on his words but the bell rings before I need to reply again.

I can feel Karkat's gaze on my back throughout classes, but I just keep my head down and concentrate on not doing anything stupid, which is difficult since I can't form coherent thoughts. I'm beginning to forget things and I have a bad feeling forming in my chest.

By the time schools out I have to squint to see past the cloudiness in my vision and the crackling sound in my head. I feel myself telling Karkat to call someone, but I barely register him replying, and I have to sit down before I just collapse. I can feel Karkat trying to comfort me but nothing's going to help. My vision is totally black and the foreboding feeling is making panic shoot through my veins almost painfully.

I feel the truck stop and that's when I escape, using my poor vision and feet to know where I'm going.

I hit the ground running, tears running down my face as I somehow manage to kick my shoes off and throwing my bag down in the hallway. My head feels to be splitting apart and I have to keep myself from screaming as I throw myself onto my bed, pressing my palms against the side of my head in a futile attempt to block out the pain. I bring my knees up to my chest, feeling the warmth of my tears soaking into the fabric.

I'm at my low right now, vulnerability making panic mix with the pain, it's almost unbearable.

A low humming reaches my ears then, and I unconsciously unfold myself. I'm able to register fingers running through my unruly hair and when a shred of thought passes through my pain clouded mind I remember that Karkat was there. He had to be the one. I try to get away from his grip, low whines emitting from the back of my throat, but he just shooshes me and tugs me closer, humming a bit lauter.

Slowly I feel the pain ebb just slightly, the pounding now a harsh throbbing. Karkat has quieted, and I begin to slip into the strange place between dreams and awakeness.

_Oh no..._

It's cold here...I never really liked it. It's quiet as well...unsettling. I hear a sobbing in the inky blackness, and as if possessed, I go towards it. A wince crosses my features as my echoey footsteps hit my head with harsh soundwaves. I'm not able to speak...but the black and white scene clarifies in front of me.

That same unsettling feeling overtakes me as bright red interrupts the monotonous grey and white scene. The sobs are lauter now, and pangs of horror run through my chest when I realize they are my own. Unbidden tears pool at the corners of my eyes and I take hesitant step forward and everything becomes clear.

No...turn the light off...make it go away...

It's me...it's me. Who am I holding? Why am I being racked with sobs.

Stop him. Oh god his dad is there...someone... _STOP HIM._ Red clouds my vision and the tears fall from my eyes...this is so bad...this is...what's going to happen. I can feel it..._ NO IT CAN'T!_

I dive forward, running towards the scene with sobs wracking my body bad enough that I could barely move. His dad turns to me with a creepy smile and I feel anger flash hot and fast through me and I'm pinning him to the space behind him. But the scene changes and I'm seeing Karkat...I'm choking him.

It's a trick...It has to be...and yet his voice...my grip is faltering.

I can't do anything...I'm useless...he's going to die because I won't be able to help him.

I can't think, can't breathe, I'm crying so much, I can't move.

I can't let it happen...I can't...dammit...DAMMIT.

"sh, it's ok,"

but...it's not...you're...you're...

He's alive, he's hugging me. I can't move though...but he's there...

"Come on, calm down ok?"

I can't though, I was so close to losing him. I blurrily make out his worried features, and I cling to his shoulders desperately, he was my lifeline. I clung to him until I could cry no longer and exhaustion was overtaking me once more.

* * *

**A/N: Confession, I was crying a bit when I typed up Sollux's dream scene. If you can decipher what was going on DON"T SPOIL IT OK. ASDFGHJKL: IT'S CRUCIAL TO THE PLOT OF THE STORY. **

**But kudos if you can figure out what it means. Challenges challenges... although I will offer enlightenment to those who are curious. **

**I might've gotten a bit redundant but hey, I got out a chapter and jeezus you guys are so awesome! So many reviews and follows and all that!**

**Disclaimer~ I own nothing but the plot~**


	20. ComeOnAndBreatheWithMeOhBreath e WithMeO...

**Thanks to**: krikanalo, ThaneOfStorm, Tsuki-shining0, chibiromano22, Bitblondetoday, FanficFinatic2, Obsessivefangirl03, Kaycee Columbell, supremebunnylord, iceytoshiro, . , Zayn noob,

**Welcome to the madness:** Autumncrepes, ashleyisnotonfire123, sealpup9, kitsunepunk400,

**Guest(EN):** Aw danke! I'm glad you think so!

And Hey, I would love to meet all my internet friends in real life! Hell, I'll probably try to write another story after this one so don't worry ^_^  
And where I go to school, they banned field trips and etc. since three years ago, so I never got to go on the 5th grade camping trip :C

**Abigail Johnson:** *SIGHS LOUDLY AND IN ANNOYANCE* I know the feeling, but things are moving rather quickly now! My sisters birthday was recently and now mine will be soon as well! Then there's October and Halloween and fun times!

I don't understand how schools can start so late for everyone else! We're already getting our Midterms at my school! (Which I'm hoping I get decent grades ^_~" )

Kanaya Maryam With Her Badass Chainsaw Makes Me Quite Glad To be A Virgo! Of Course, I Also Wish That I Was A Gemini, Sollux Is My Favorite Troll And I'm Actually Planning A Cosplay For Him! (which I'm doubting I'll actually work on/ finish) One of my best friends is a Libra! Are you as crazy as she is? I'm actually rather crazy for a Virgo to be honest!

As for me being like Kanaya, yes, I consider myself to be like her. I can easily be formal and ladylike (although I rather hate it and will only do it if I need to) I would love to go around revving a chainsaw though! Plus Damn She Has Nice Fashion Taste. But I'm more of a practical dresser, instead of dresses and skirts I prefer Tux's and jeans. I actually wore a tuxedo and tie for my school picture whereas a majority (but not all) wore skirts and dresses and heels and my it was rather pointless seeing as they only take the poicture from the waist up!

Oh My...I Do Believe That I Am Ranting A Bit Now...  
Uhm... I Do Enjoy Talking To You, You're Quite Nice ^_^  
Until The Next Review My Libra Friend!

**RealitySucks**: Danke Shoon friend!

**I"M SO DONE AT THE MOMENT **

**So I read The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. **  
**I don't believe I've cried so much. **

**I'm typing this happy chapter to sort of distract myself, not like I needed to think anyway. **

**It's super hot where I live right now, dammit it's September, it should be cooling down not heating up. **

**AUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH. **

**Ok...yeah I'll just...let you guys read now...**  
\

* * *

School was as horrible as ever, it seemed like the teachers started getting together just so that they could plan the most amount of homework and tests in the same day for everyone. When we got out of school on Friday, after I picked up Nepeta, I had to immediately start working on a History project that was due Monday that had been assigned a week before but like everyone else I had procrastinated until the (almost) last minute.

I sigh as my bangs fall into my face, and I brush them back in annoyance as I draw a (terrible) island on the poster paper I had borrowed from my core+ teacher. My music was turned up as loud as it could go and I heard a few neighbors yelling but I honestly didn't care so I just sang along loudly to annoy them more. Layla was out getting art supplies, which would take her the better part of the hour, and Nepeta was in her room.

My phone lit up with a text and I debated ignoring it since I was doing pretty well with drawing the supposedly egg-shaped island with little trees and mountains...yeah I picked up my phone.

TA: ii reque2t that you GET ME OUT OF THII2 2IITUATIION

There's a multimedia file which I immediately begin laughing at once it opens. I can see Sollux's eyes and the top of his head, but I thn focus on what's in the background. Latula and Mituna are in the background laughing at something but are sitting on each others laps. A bottle of some sort of drink is on the table by the couch, two actually, once I zoom in enough. now that I'm zoomed I see Kankri and Cronus macking it out in the background.

Jesus freaking Christ.

CG: OH MY GOD i CAN'T STOP LAUGHING  
CG: SERIOUSLY  
CG: DUDE  
TA: II'M 2UFFERIING  
TA: II NEED TO E2CAPE  
CG: DO YOU WANT TO GO DO SOMETHING THEN?

I glance at the time, it wasn't terribly late, only around 5.

TA: YE2  
TA: DON'T CARE WHAT  
TA: II JU2T NEED TO GET AWAY FROM THII2 HOU2E  
CG: OK OK YEAH I UNDERSTAND  
CG: COME OVER TO MY HOUSE AND WE CAN THINK OF SOMETHING  
CG: I HAVE TO WATCH NEPETA UNTIL MY MOM GETS BACK  
CG: BUT THEN WE CAN GO SOMEWHERE  
TA: i'm almo2t at your pla2e actually, ii left on2e you an2wered me

Seeing the message, I scramble up from my place on the ground and sprint for the door, yelling at Nepeta that I was going out for a few minutes. I disregard shoes but kick off my socks to run barefooted down the many flights of stairs and skid to a stop just as Sollux walks into the lobby, running a hand through his bangs.

"Hi KK," He smiles, putting his hands in his pockets and walking over to me.

"You should've told me you were already headed over, Jesus Sollux," I scowl, smacking his arm before turning and walking back up the stairs. I can hear him chuckle as he follows behind me.

As I get to my apartment, a neighbor, a fat asshole who I could care less about, stalks up to me.

"You need to turn your music down boy," He growls at me, giving me a glare. I keep an expressionless look on my face as I slowly raise my hand to my eye level, then flip him off before darting into the apartment, dragging Sollux with me. I slam the door and laugh as I hear the man shout indignantly.

"...uh...ok then..." Sollux says quietly, and I turn to see him blow his bangs off his forehead.

"Oh hey, you got new glasses," I say in surprise, seeing he's wearing a pair of old paper 3d glasses. He smiles lightly and takes them off, folding them to put in the pocket of his coat.

"Yeah, my other one'th are going to take another week or tho to fix and I really didn't want to deal with thothe annoying contactth for that long," he grimaces slightly, but looks around a bit.

Nepeta darts out of her room at the moment and tackle-hugs Sollux from behind. He loses his balance and falls forward, using my shoulders to steady himself. And unfortunately I wasn't the best choice for that because under the both of their weights my knees buckle and I yelp as I hit the ground.

"PAWLLUX!" she squeals, Sitting on his back as he tries not to crush my legs.

"NEP JESUS FREAKING CHRIST!" I yell, sliding out from under Sollux and letting the man fall to the ground with a thud and groan.

"Heh...sorry," She giggles, standing to let Sollux sit cross-legged on the floor. He has one eye closed as he rubs at his back.

"Ow, Nep how can you be tho throng for thuch a thmall girl," he half-whines.

"I didn't mean to hurt you! I was just saying hi!" She pouts before grinning, hugging him in apology before sitting back again.

"So what have you been doing Nep?" I question, seeing some paint splattered on her hands. She giggles and runs back to her room, running back out and displaying a canvas about the size she was. On it, she had painted stick figure versions of her friends and some other people.

"This is what I'm doing for class! See, the pink is friends, like with me and Purrezi! Then red means really likes each other, like Eridan and Feferi." She points at each of them, and I nod even though they all looked like scribbles to me. "Black is HATE but not really hate," She points to one with Vriska, Kanaya and Aradia.

I noticed one with red that looked like Rose and Kanaya, then one with what seemed like Dave and John. I contemplate these for a second before bringing my fingers forward to touch the now dry paint.

These actually seem probable...

I hear Sollux yelp suddenly and as I look over a blush is spread across his cheeks. He seems to be looking at one of the pairings, and once I move to his side to see, I know why he reacted as such.

"NEPETA!" I Yelp, covering my face with my hands. I hear her begin to giggle, which only makes me blush more. "WHY DID YOU PUT US ON THERE WITH RED!?"

"But you two are purrfect!" She shouts, earning more embarrassed protests from the both of us. Of course in that moment my mom walked in, looking at us in confusion with armfuls of supplies.

"I always walk into the weirdest moments don't I," She sighs playfully, walking into the kitchen to drop off the art stuff before returning to us. Before she could greet us properly, I interrupt her.

"Hey can Sollux and I go out for a bit? School stuff," I add onto the end, realizing how it sounded. She just looks at me before laughing.

"Of course, why would I stop you?"

I nod and drag Sollux to my room so that I can put on some shoes and pocket my phone before heading out once more, still dragging Sollux. We both avoid eye contact until we get to the car, my awkward start for conversation the interruption.

"So uh where do you want to go?"

"Well thereth alwayth the mall I gueth, I honethtly haven't been here long enough to actually look around town or anything..." He rubs the back of his head as he works the keys out of his pocket, unlocking the vehicle and allowing me to jump inside.

"I would say we could go to the park, but it's insanely hot right now, so I'd rather not," It somehow was getting hotter progressively throughout the month which is strange enough since it should be cooling down instead, fall was coming soon after all.

"So...mall?" Sollux asks, driving down the road and looking over at my with the corner of his eyes.

"Yeah, sure. So how's German class," I inquire, remembering that he had coded in German.

"Ist Gut, du... sheisse...ich... ok yeah I tried, I still can't remember verbs and stuff," He winces at his own incompetence.

"Hey, you didn't lisp when you spoke it though," I remarked, impressed on the fact.

"Yeah, it'th the thame for French too...um... Fils de Salop."

"Translate please, I don't speak your language," I tease, glancing over at him.

"But mon petite Karkat, that wouldn't be much fun now would it?" he smirks, adding a thick French accent.

"Ugh, but it's annoying me!" I groan in frustration.

He snorts, "Am I driving you crazy?"

"YES!"" I shout, glaring at him.

"Du Hast einen Vogel?"

TRANSLATE YOU BASTARD!"

"Hm, nein," he grins.

"JESUS CHRIST YOU"RE INFURIATING!"

"Ah, but du liebst sie anyway," He grins at me, and I give up in trying to get him to speak English.

We stay silent until we drive up to the parking lot, having to park in the back due to how crowde dit was, but we were bored and neither of us wanted to go back ot our houses so we didn't.

Walking past the stores, there were multiple groups of teenagers goofing off, and that was honestly more amusing than anything.

We stopped in a bookstore, where we spent the better part of an hour flipping through books and finding interesting phrases in some. We recieved some dirty glares but We just stuck our tongues out at them before moving to another section or shelf.

After browsing almost all the stores, successfully avoiding anyone we knew, I got a text from my mom saying it was time to head home. To which I agreed because it was nearing nine o'clock.

"Merde, time to go Sollux," I sigh, tugging him away from the reack of CD's that he was looking through. He ylps but twists around, having to stoop down to my height to do so (which annoyed me to no end.)

On the drive home we recounted the best moments form the stores.

"That one lady who I started giving advice to actually believed me," Sollux snickers, keeping his eyes on the road but laughing.

"And don't forget the old guy who thought we were girls," I snort. Hearing that from the old guy caused us t ocgo up to a gaggle of girls and begin laughing in obnoxiously high tones before running off.

"Ah, such a fun Freitag wasn't it," Sollux sighs happily, pulling to a stop in front of my building.

"You're welcome for getting you out of the situation," I laugh, looking over at him.

"Danke! I don't think I could've lathted long," He shudders in horror but smiles at me.

"Well...

"Auf Wiedersehen," He says fondly, and it sounds like a goodby to me.

"Bye," I smile, stepping out and backing onto the sidewalk to watch him drive away.

There's still a small smile on my face as I walk up to my room.

* * *

**Authors Note: **

**AHGDFKDJDSLKHDSLGA:ODJA BAD ENDING BUT I FRANKLY DON"T REA:LLY CARE RIGHT NOW **

**Translations (because I'm nicer than making you Google it) **

**Ist Gut, du... sheisse...ich.(German)**: It's good...shit...I.

**Fils de Salop (French)**: Son of a Bitch

**mon Petite(french)**: My little

**Du Hast einen Vogel: German):** Literally translates to "you have a bird" but as an idiom it means "you are crazy" (if you ever want to scream it at someone whithout them knowing what it means, it's pronounced: Doo Hast eye-nen Foe-gell)

**Nein (German)**: No (whixh I would be shocked if you didn't know that)

**du liebst sie (German)**: You Love me (I'm pretty sure anyway...)

**sheisse (German)** Shit (very useful guys, pronounced "shy-se" With a chka over the e)

**Merde (French**) also means shit.

**So guys :D Hope you liked it**

**I've been contemplating zodiac signs lately, it's shocking how many people resemble their signs. **

**anyway, hope you guys enjoyed and I'll hopefully update in a timely matter. **

**My my...already on chapter twenty guys...  
**

**DROPPING A REVIEW WOULD BE LOVELY**

**AND THIS WASN"T PROOF READ**

**~Disclaimer~ I OWN NOTHING but the plot~**


	21. Well I Know You Lay In Bed

**A/N (Important facts ahead, reading would be useful to you!)**

**So I put the "thanks to for reviewing" at the end note instead of the beginning note, I'm not really sure why but I thought it's be easier or something :P**

**Welcome to the madness**: bobboIV, jmsesay5683, .12, lunanoel, Valerie Michaelis, Aprincessb1215,

**Feferi Peixes: I'**m Pleased That You Enjoy The Story Feferi And I'm Planning On Adding You Into Future Chapters So Do Not Worry My Friend

**14 Len kagamine 14:** You got lucky friend!

**So guys I've done some math(shudder) and I've calculated how many chapters this story will have if I stick to the lyrics**  
**It'll be 36...which isn't too horrible, but hey! good news! I Have it all figured out! Ish...kinda...halfway...a majority...**  
**Ok I've got an outline!**  
**But luckily, there won't be as many bullshit filler chapters as I thought!(at first I guesstimated around 7 then narrowed it down to 5, then my friends helped me smush the fillers down enough that I could configure it all!)**  
**This is basically the last one, ok well...2 more bullshit chapters then we get to the real deal plot ok! :D And since I'm typing most of these all in one go, I might update two chapters for you guys...maybe if I can type it all up, then I'll work on the plot and stuff to have it all nice and detailed!**

**Hope you guys enjoy! :D**

* * *

Saturday morning, I wake up still pretty happy. Then I realize why I woke up.

"Karkitty! Wake up wake up wake up!" Nepeta squeals as she jumps on my bed, her elbow hitting my ribs and knee colliding with my stomach.

"oof, Nep, calm down," i gasp, sitting up to grab her around the middle and set her to the side, wincing as I re-gain my breath.

"Sorry! But wake up! I need you to take me somewhere!" She grins, pulling at my arm in a weak attempt to get me out of bed.

"Ugh, where exactly?" I groan, continuing to stay sitting in my bed, actually falling back and allowing my head to hit the pillow. Nepeta huffs in annoyance at this and moves to sit on my chest.

"You are taking me, Eridan, Feferi, and Terezi to the park!" She shouts gleefully, grabbing at my shoulders.

"I won't be doing any of that if you suffocate me!" i protest, sitting up to throw her off. She just giggles and skips off to the side of my bed.

"Yay! get dressed Karkitty! I want to leave soon!" She yells at me as she runs out, shutting the door behind her. I heave myself out of bed, knowing that if I wasn't dressed in about five minutes Nepeta would come running back in demanding that I get dressed. I check my phone, seeing no new messages I just grab some random clothes and set it up to charge for a few minutes until I left.

As predicted, I had just slid my shirt over my shoulders when Nepeta slams open my door, her 7 year old face looking annoyed until she realized that I was almost ready, then she smiled and nodded, leaving once more.

Nepeta is skipping beside me as I walk with her to Eridan's house, since he lives the closest to us. The fall wind was chill enough that I had zipped up my jacket and was contemplating drawing the hood over my head, but decided against it since it would probably make me seem like a creeper or something. I was glad for the fall weather though, I would much rather be cool. Coldness is good.

Eridan's house was huge, as an understatement. I kind of understood why he was such a spoiled prick, I mean, you could probably fit ten families in the mini-mansion without any trouble.

Nepeta runs to the front door to ring the doorbell with a large grin on her face, getting a bit distracted by a floating leaf but focus returning on the purple door once it opens.

"Eridan!" She squeals happily, hugging the young boy close. From my vantage point I can see him blush lightly before hugging her back hesitantly then pulling away quickly to glare at me. He doesn't say anything and I realize why when Feferi pushes him out of the way to hug Nepeta, the two girls giggling at each other.

"Terezi couldn't make it, her mom is taking her to an art museum," Feferi says in a clear, bubbly voice to the girl.

"Aw, That's to bad Feferi! But we will try to have as much fan as we can anyway!" Nepeta frowns, but takes ahold of Feferi's wrist to pull her out to me.

"Hallo Karcrab! I'm glad you're ok with taking us to the park," Feferi says somewhat shyly, givin gme a quick hug (that almost knocked me off-balance) before pulling back to grin at me.

SHe looks back at Eridan, who was slipping a key into his pocket. A silent conversatin seems to ensue between the two of them, and after a few moments it seems as if Eridan lost, since he comes up to me with his gaze on the ground.

"Thanks...lowwblood," he mutters, shuffling his feet a bit.

I snort and ruffle his hair, which earns me a shouted protest. "It's fine, not like I had anything better to do."

He attempts to re-position his hair in the way it was before (and failing) before beginning to walk ahead of me, Feferi and Nepeta fallng into step beside him. The three quickly begin conversing in poorly whispered tones, and I can tell that they've begun roleplaying.

The conversation consisted largely as "glubs" "paws" "wwhatevvers" and "Whales", and I basically couldn't follow it at all and I barely bothered trying.

Once we got to the park, they ran to the field with shrieks of laughter and 'glubs!', since they were still in my sight I just let them go, and retreated to a bench, sitting cross-legged and watching them run around for a while before my thoughts began to wander. After awhile I began to feel pins nad needles in my legs so I stood and began walking around a bit, keeping the children in sight.

The park was pretty empty despite it being a pleasant day, there was the occasional jogger and a few teens running around, a few of them going into teh surrounding woods, but otherwise there wasn't much else.

I'm distracted from the scenery by a buzzing in my pocket, and I slide out my phone to see the text message.

TA: ii 2ee you~  
CG: WHAT

I look up and glance around, not seeing anyone in immediate sight, so I look down at my phone screen, trying to squint past the sunlight's glare.

TA: exactly what ii 2aiid  
TA: ii 2ee you~  
CG: WHERE ARE YOU THOUGH  
CG: I CAN'T SEE YOU  
TA: maybe ii don't want you two 2ee me kk  
TA: maybe ii'm hiidiing on purpo2e  
CG: BULLSHIT

I've found refuge from the sun under a large oak tree that's been growing in this park for years, it's roots poking up from the ground in ways that you could easily find a nice place to sit, which I did.

TA: 2o you're watchiing nepeta feferii and the miinii priick eriidan riight  
CG: FUCKING HELL YOU ARE HERE  
CG: STOP FUCKING AROUND SOLLUX  
TA: iit2 fun tea2iing you though kk

I scowl at my screen and try to look around the park again, but there was literally no one there, only three young 2nd graders running around in the field. Minus that one jogger that looked like she needed a break. Deciding I really didn't want to try and find Sollux myself, I call him.

"You're a mess~"  
"Tangled easy confidence  
You think you haven't sin-"

I glance around, hearing the audio recording of our cover of the song, but it was...

Standing up, I gaze through the leaves of the old oak tree and yelp when I see Sollux smiling down at me, his paper glasses barely on the tip of his nose as he looks down at me from a low branch.

"OH MY FUCKING GOD SOLLUX!" I yell, earning an amused chuckle from him.

"I wish I'd turned my phone on thilent but oh well," He sighs with a smile and swings off backwards, keeping his legs hooked onto the branch for balance. He smiled at me from his upside-down position, shirt beginning to inch towards his shoulders.

"How long have you been there?" I ask, trying to focus on him, which was hard with him being upside down and all.

"Thinthe before you got here, I thaw you walking here tho I climbed the tree!"

"Speaking of which, get down that's distracting, get down," I say with a small scowl.

"But thith ith fun!" He grins, swinging a bit and ruffling my hair.

"If you fall I'm not carrying your unconscious body to the hospital," I huff, not even attempting to fix my hair.

"I won't KK! You thoud join me, theriouthly thith ith fun," he chirps, pausing in his upside-down swinging to grab at my arms, although it seemed like a challenging task for him with his position.

"Hahah yeah no, I can't climb trees," I say, moving back out of his reach. He pouts before swinging himself to the ground, doing a sort of half flip to land in front of me. I gape at him for a few seconds before shaking my head.

"I have no idea how you can do that," I sigh, glancing around him to see that the three kids are still playing happily.

"I took thome martial art'th clath'eth when I wath younger, it didn't do much but now I can do flipth and thtuff," As if to prove his point he takes a few steps away from me and does a back-bend, flipping onto his feet once more. Facing me, he looks up to see a branch and I see a smile on his face as he leaps up to grab it, pulling himself up to stand on the thin wood.

I just stand there and watch him weave between interlapping branches to climb a bit higher before looking back down at me. He seems a bit exasperated as he returns to the lowest branch possible, sitting down and reaching a hand out to me.

"Come on," he coaxes. I stare at his hand before hesitantly grasping it. We were close enough to the base of tree that I could somewhat place my foot on a root and use Sollux's hand to pull myself up onto the branch beside him.

"See it wathn't that hard!"

I punch his shoulder, but smile as I stand, him quickly doing the same. He seems to know exactly where to place his feet, whereas I have to scramble for footholds. By the time we'd made it almost to the toop, I had a somewhat deep scratch along my forearm and probably some leaves in my hair but I ignored those as he stops on one of the thicker branches.

"You've never been here before right!? This is your first time climbing this tree!?" I pant, regaining my breath from the tedious climb (for me anyway, Sollux barely seemed winded).

"Yeah, I'm uthed to climbing treeth though, we uthed to have a really big one in the backyard of our third houthe, it wath really fun, it wath pretty thimilar to thith tree actually," he pats the branch and smiles, and I notice he had put his paper specs into his jacket pocket.

"hm, I've lived in an apartment the entirety of my life, so never had much skill for climbing," I shrug and lean against the trunk of the tree.

"God, yeah I can't really even imagine that, to be completely honetht," Sollux looks up through the branches and a patch of sunlight splashes onto his face, giving it an unreal look. His eyes seem more brilliant at this angle and I find myself staring at him even as he glances over at me. He has a very light splash of freckles over his nose, something I hadn't really noticed before.

He stares back at me until a text tone distracts us and he pulls out his phone. A scowl stretches across his face as he reads the message and I see his jaw clench as he answers, beginning to pocket his phone before someone tries to call him, and I realize he still has me singing as his call alert.

"Hey why do you have me singing as your call alert?" I inquire, making him pause his phone-pocketing and look over at me. A blush spreads across his face before he answers.

"I like your singing, you're really good," he mutters in embarrassment, making me chuckle. He hadn't lisped...hm.

"It's ok, I was just wondering," I grab his phone from him, not having to unlock it. I see that he's texting Mituna.

"did you guys get into a fight?" I'm only able to read a few sentences before he regains possession of his phone from me.

"Yeah...basically," he mutters, typing a bit more before locking it once more.

"What about?" I realize that I'm being a bit nosy but Mituna seemed either worried or pissed, I didn't have enough time to attempt to decipher the text message since it was 7YP3ED L1K3 7H1S or somewhere near that.

"Jutht thtupid thtuff, we are brotherth tho we're kind of obligated to fight you know."

"true, sorry for being nosy, but wait do you have the entire cover of the song on your phone?" I question, snatching the phone back and unlocking it (having seen him do it before) and I exit out of the text chat to go to th emedia player or whatever it was called. He now tries to get it back, so to avoid his arm I one handedly swing from the branch we were on to the one below us, then hearing him following I repat that process (almost falling or dropping the phone multiple times) until I reach the ground, where I take off sprinting, hearing him shout from behind me.

"Nepeta!" Feferi squeals, "Tell us more about Karkat and Sollux!"

Eridan seems to be interested as well, especially since the boys the conversation was about were not within hearing distance.

Nepeta giggles as she sits on the ground, folding her legs and motioning the others to follow suit.

"Well, they obviously like each other, Sollux probably a little more obvious about it. Karkat's more of in a halfway stage of denial," the girl smiles at her perceptiveness.

"Isn't Sol older than Kar?"

"Yes! By only two years though, that isn't terribly bad!"

"How romantic," Feferi sighs, smiling dreamily. Eridan blushes lightly at her sigh and keeps his gaze focused on the ground. Nepeta covers her smile with her hand at her two friends likeness for each other. Although, at the moment it seemed to be a little one-sided, but she was definitely going to make it better.

A shout reaches her ears and twisting her head to the side she sees Karkat sprinting away from Sollux, who was chasing after him. Karkat is grinning as he has something clutched in his hands, Sollux seemed more annoyed than angry at the actions. The two of them sprint past the three kids and laughter from Karkat reaches Nepeta's ears. She was happy to hear him laugh like that, he was always so bitter.

Even her young mind knew the difference between a real and a fake laugh.

The two teens run all the way to the edge of the field they were playing in before Sollux tackles Karkat to the ground, but it was clearly not meant to really harm the teen, and she could still hear the laughter.

"Ok ok I give!" I laugh, giving him back to mobile device.

"Now wath that tho much trouble?" he asks mockingly.

"Yes," I joke, pushing against his shoulders to sit up. I see Nepeta running across the field to reach me, with Feferi and Eridan close at her heels. I look around and I notice how late it had gotten, it was nearing late afternoon, with the sun high in the sky.

"Hi Pawllux!" She squeals, hugging him before stepping back.

"Eridan and Feferi needs to be taken home soon I assume," I say with a raised brow, looking at the two of them. Feferi nods shyly, grinning at me, Eridan just shrugs. I take that as a yes and stand, looking over at Sollux.

"See you tomorrow," i say with a smirk, before turning away, hearing Feferi and Nepeta shout goodbyes at him as they follow me, Eridan seemingly stayed silent.

As we walk back to Eridan's, I can hear them conversing in giggled tones behind me (excluding Eridan...maybe) but I couldn't tell what they were saying.

Behind Karkat's back Nepeta giggles as she whispers:

"Told ya so."

* * *

**End note:**

**FUCKING HELL HOW MANY BAD ENDINGS CAN I HAVE?**

**A SHITLOAD THAT"S HOW MANY**

**ok yeah I REALLY wanted to type this up for literally NO REASON**

**Warning: next update might be slow because many events are coming up. Violin audition, b-day, possible early-halloween thing, and of course school in general.**

**Got all A's on my midterm, although Algebra I have literally the lowest A possible without it being a B...**  
**That'll change by report cards I guarantee it.**

**Bah, school can burn :/**

**but I hope you guys liked this chapter! (even though it's bullshit...)**

**thank you to: **krikanalo, chibiromano22, Tsuki-shining09, Kaycee Columbell, America96, Yaoiandyurifreak, KarkatIsChickenOrzo, Bitblondetoday, Death by Violet,im-not-only-crazy ,Obsessivefangirl03, Lost Phantom,Zayn noob, : Brit98, Valerie Michaelis**, For Reviewing**

**~Disclaimer~ I own nothing but the plot~**


	22. Contemplating Your Own Death

**(A/N at the bottom)**

Once I get home I get a quick shower and sit down on my bed, staring at my computer for a few moments of contemplation before shaking my head and lying back on the rumpled sheets. II stare at the ceiling and think about the afternoon. It was fun actually, I was glad I had actually done something instead of sat around like I would've done originally.

My thoughts wander to Sollux and Mituna's conversation over text. They seemed like the type of sibling that would either hate each other or would be in cahoots together. Mituna's typing was horrible, but from what I could tell Sollux had ran out (literally ran because I can't remember seeing the shape of car keys in any of his pockets) but Mituna was worried and Sollux didn't want him to worry. Of course I might've been reading into it to much but it seemed like a logical reasoning.

Me rarely fight, of course that might be because I'm more protective of her than anything, and because she's really too sweet to attempt to argue with. Although, I know that Equius used to fight alot, mostly with good reason but...

I feel a frown form on my face as I stare at the ceiling, beginning to contemplate the past.

* * *

_ring_

_ring_

_"I've got the phone mom!" I shout to my mother who was working on a painting in her room. She shouts something about putting her canvas up to dry, and I ignore it as I pick up the receiver. _

_"Hello?"_

_"Is this the residence of Layla Vantas?" _

_I frown, recognizing the name of my mom, looking up at her as she walks through the doorway, attempting to wipe off the paint splatters layered in multiple colors all over her hands and up her arms all the way to her elbow. She blows a stray lock of hair out of her eyes as she takes the phone from me, smiling at me before speaking. _

_"I'm Layla," She says shortly, then stops to listen. I can't decipher anything from what the man was saying, but I could see the change of expression over my mothers face as she slowly drops the stained towel and a hand moves to cover her mouth. I find myself gripping her sleeve like a young child even though I was 13. She doesn't move as a strangled sound emits from her and the man on the other phone seems to get worried. _

_"Yeah, uhm, I'm, hell I'm not fine just...I'll be over to get Nepeta shortly," she says quickly, and I see a single tear fall from her obsidian eyes as she hangs up the phone and rushes from the phone to her room, shoving on shoes and grabbing her car keys, yelling instructions at me. _

_"I need to go pick up your cousin...just stay here alright, keep the door locked," I don't have time to answer as she rushes out the door, leaving me in silence. I knew it was something bad, and especially so if she was going to pick up my five year old cousin. _

_Walking quietly to the phone, I check the previous conversation and play it over, having done it a few times before to try and figure out what Silas did for a living (still didn't know). As the whole thing replayed, my eyes widened and I felt my heart stop for a few seconds. _

_"Aunt Leijon? No way...FUCKING SON OF A BITCH!" I yell, slapping a hand over my mouth immediately after shouting. A car accident...some unknown driver who is now being chased according to the man on the phone...but Aunt Leijon was killed on impact. "Fuck..." i whisper, sitting on the ground and curling my knees up to my chest. _

_'C'mon Karkat let's go for a run!" My aunt stage whispers as she grabs my hand, both of us already wearing running clothes. She takes off sprinting and I have to rush to keep up, which I can only do for a few seconds with my shorter legs but she just slows down to let me keep up. I can remember stopping by the tree in the park gasping for breath, hunched over. She just grabbed my shoulders to make me straighten up and chuckles. _

"fuck..." I murmur, fingers gripped in my short hair, feeling tears prick at the edges of my eyes-

I pull myself out of the memory, feeling tears gather under my closed lids unbidden.

"Dammit..." I murmur, placing my arm over my eyes and gripping my comforter with my left hand, fist clenching.

* * *

_"sh sh, it's alright Nep," I say softly, holding the girl to my chest as I run my fingers through her hair. She tries to muffle her sobs in the front of my suit, but it isn't working out very well. The funeral processino is grim and her soft cries are the only sound that's truely resounding. I can see my mom clenching her hand around the hem of her skirt, other hand held tightly by my uncle. _

_I keep her gaze away as they lower the coffin into the 6 foot hole, having to hold back tears myself. A very hard feat to achieve. _

_The rest of the time passes in a blur until I see Kankri standing in front of me, looking apologetic. We were the only ones in the funeral hall and I could feel myself breaking on the inside as he kneels down to hug me close, murmuring comforting words in my ear. He knew didn't he, that I had to act tough around everyone. _

_When I pull away I feel awkward I rub at my nose, keeping my gaze on the ground. _

_"It's ok Karkat," he says softly, standing and running his hainds through my hair and handing me a tissue, his tall twenty-year-old form easily dwarfing my own. _

_"Thanks...we both know it's not though," I respond, turning away and walking out, leaving him standing alone in the hall. _

_"So we did meet at one point...wonder why i just now remembered," I mutter, not opening my eyes, keeping myself focused on the dark blackness under my eyelids. _

_As I walk out I feel someones gaze on me, and I turn to see Equius watchnig me from the side of the building, waiting for something obviously. He was easily taller than Kankri, and more muscle-y but even though he was Nepeta's brother I hadn't ever really interacted with him much. _

_"Karkat...I'm terribly sorry to ask this of you, especially when you are so distraught over my mother's death, but I must ask you of this," he seems nervous as he tosses his phone around in his hands, I notice the black screen was lacerated in many spiderwebbed cracks. He wasn't wearing his shades, instead I could see the sorrow in his aqua-blue eyes. _

_"yeah...uhm what is it?" I ask with a scratchy tone, wincing at the sound. _

_"Nepeta...I ask that you take care of her, I'm very sorry to say that my boss will not allow me to care for her and with my line of work that would be difficult in the firsdt place," He looks up at me and I notice the faint bruises surrounding his eyes, making me curious to how they were inflicted. _

_"And...I realize the gravity of your own situation, but there is truely no other that I could turn to, I have inquired and no one else is availiable, I beg of you to take care of her-" He's beginning to ramble when I cut him off with a short sniffle. _

_"Yeah, I will, no worries, I've taken care of myself for this long," I hear the bitterness in my own voice as my hand unconsciously rubs at a bruise on my shoulder. _

_"I thank You Karkat Vantas, if you ever need to contact me, please use this number," he hands me a piece of paper with a number scrawled in sloppy writing, which i fold into my pocket. _

_"Thanks..." I say softly, looking up at him briefly before walking away, to my mom holding a sleeping Nepeta in the distance. _

* * *

"Fuck fucking everything," I sob into my arm. I seemed to remember theses sort of things at the worst moments. My phone buzzes and considering that I'm crying, I don't answer it, but then it goes off again, and again, forcing me to pick it up.

"KK...are you alright?"

I freeze, letting out a short breath, how did he...

"Uhm...truthfully no...just reminiscing...it's nothing Sollux."

"Ok KK...if you say so...just sorry I called, I felt like something was wrong," I can hear the worry in his voice, and despite the tears dripping off the bridge of my nose and my chin I smile.

"Sometimes I just remember, it's fine, I'm going to sleep now, see you tomorrow," I say shortly, clicking to hang up and tossing the phone onto my bed.

Despite the sadness still encircling my mind I allow myself to fall off to sleep.

* * *

**Short A/N: **

**ThaneOfStorm: Well, I sort of go by ear as well as cross-check and I do realize some of the lyrics seem off but there are so many different views of the words that I honestly don't know what's right/wrong :/ Sorry! **

**CAN I GET A GOOD ENDIN FOR A CHAPPIE? NOOOOOOOPE!**

**UGH I LOVE ALL YOU REVIEWERS BUT FREAKIN EMAIL FUCKED UP AND I DON'T KNOW IF I REPLIED TO YOU OR NOT AND IT"s So MUCH TROUBLE TO GET YOUR NAMES UP HERE SO THANK YOU I LOVE YOU AND REVIEW AGAIN!**

**WELCOME TO THOSE WHO"VE JOINED THE MADNESS **  
**FUCKING EMAIL**

**SO this is a short chapter but it is a filler and I at least wanted to get it out of the way since I'm going to be a bit busy the rest of the week. **  
**I HAVE A FUCKING AUDITION THURSDAY FUUUUUUUUU- I"M NERVOUS AS HELL OH GOD**  
**THEN I HAVE TO DEAL WITH MY BIRTHDAY NO NOPE NU-UH NONE OF THE WANT**  
**SHIT I HAVE TO WORK ON SCHOOL BULLSHIT **  
**RAGEQUITRAGEQUITRAGEQUIT. **

**OH MY GOD THIS IS SO SHORT I'M SORRY BUT I HAVE STUFF TO D**O

**Ok...yup sorry bout that...**

**I'll just...**

**Bye for now...**

**~Disclaimer I own nothing but the plot~**


	23. Well Just Look at What You've Done

**Hey guys, so I've given up on listing all the thank you for reviews as well as Welcomes, life is too crazy right now :/ Maybe if my email stops fucking up I can start it again but all in all I'm a combination of busy and lazy. **

**Well, maybe I'll try again once I get my shit together. **  
**School can burn in hell :/ **

**So Thank You all for the multiple reviews I love you all! I seriously love every review that I get and if I had the patience I would reply...ok if i had the time. **

**WELCOME TO THE MADNESS TO THOSE THAT HAVE JOINED IN ON THIS ESCAPADE**

**Abigail Johnson**: Hi there friend :D

I do realize about the true patron, at first I thought my true patron was Tavros, when it is actually Eridan! And since I'm fine with either, I'm happy with either! Or...wait...ok my b-day is 9/14 that's 23 and 23 goes through the twelve trolls once, then goes through 11 more and that's Eridan right?  
And I love answering your questions! Don't worry about asking me too many things or anything, I enjoy talking to my reviewers (even though I'm hopelessly lazy =_=")  
Your b-day is nearby my Libra friends'! :D  
(I'm so lazy I rarely type out "Birthday")  
Anyway, until next review!

**i'll See you guys At the End of the Chapter. :) **

* * *

Monday passed, all of us slogged through it as all teenagers do: by complaining the entire time, then crashing after completing the ridiculous amount of homework that teachers believe assigning to us...even though it was a Monday.

When I woke up Tuesday I had a brief moment of panic when I realized we had only two more days to work on our song to perfect it for class. I was getting so nervous, and I had to force myself to calm down.

Kicking off my blankets, I forced myself out of bed and stumbled to my dresser to grab a hoodie with this strangely shaped (that almost looked like blood dripping from a slash wound) red paint splatter on the black material. I pull it over the t-shirt I had worn to bed, slipping into jeans as well. My mom opened the door with a look that said 'if your ass isn't out of bed I'm going to yell at you' which vanished once she saw I was awake, and she smiled at me while she closed the door.

After I completed my routine morning rituals, I noticed that I had woken up earlier than usual, and since I usually skip breakfast, I decided to work on the guitar part a bit for the song. I felt like I needed to perfect it, even though everyone kept insisting that I could've been the guitar player for Get Scared and they wouldn't have noticed a difference. I'm a paranoid and generally pessimistic person though, so I just work on it till it was time for me to walk Nepeta to school. By then my fingers were starting to hurt from holding the strings down for so long.

It was finally starting to cool down a bit, which I was thankful for as I walked Nepeta, although I was even more thankful that I was wearing my hoodie, the wind was cold enough to send a slight shiver down my spine. Despite the fact that the sun was out (more accurately to describe as rising) it seemed unnaturally cold.

After dropping her off then heading off to my school, I meet up with Sollux on the walk over (he seemed a bit out of it, or at least annoyed) and the two of us talked about the song. Honestly, I doubted we would be talking about much else until we actually play.

We meet up with Gamzee and Tavros at the front, and the four of us proceed to (barely) survive through a majority of our classes.

Although lunch is an obvious blessing, we have it with a few classes of underclassmen and it's so much fun messing with them. That, or we proceed to have the most fucked up and random conversations ever thought of, that we usually end up forgetting by the end of the week. This week we were making food sculptures out of the almost inedible feed they serve in the lunch lines.

"Dammit Gamzee I was going to use those fries!" I complain as he steals a few and uses one to stick on top of the stale crackers they give for salads and eats the others. Sollux then snatched a few more and used the glue-like substance the lunch ladies called peanut butter (but tasted like cardboard) to form the fries into a "II" structure he had managed to balance on top of empty plastic fruit containers.

Tavros had been supplying materials to Gamzee's sculpture, so he was just watching and laughing as we attempted to beat the height of each-others food models. Before we could completely finish the masterpieces and snap quick pictures with the phones we keep in our pockets (even though we aren't supposed to) we have to throw our trash away and head to the next class.

We trudge through the rest of the day until it ends, then while we're waiting outside, Sollux warns us that he won't be able to practice tonight because he has to stay with Mituna while his dad is gone.

Not like any of us really felt like working on it anyway, plus we all were given a ridiculous amount of homework. My backpack was weighed down with four textbooks and two of my binders. Ugh.

Returning to each of our respective houses, we communicate through text, especially for our homework since we all had a majority of same classes. At one point I had to have Sollux assist me with math because math is impossible. I hate math. I wouldn't have cared if the math book spontaneously burst into flames.

I didn't really know what to do after I had finished the homework so I just laid in bed and stared at the ceiling, feeling like I had been rather productive the past few hours with all of my notes and homework spread across my bedsheets. I was beginning to drift off to sleep when I jerked awake by a knock on my door: just my mom alerting my to dinner.

I blearily ate dinner and forced myself into a shower before returning to my room, haphazardly gathering all of the papers and somewhat arranging them according to subject before falling back onto the bed and allowing myself to sleep.

* * *

_bzzzz_

_Bzzzz_

_BZZZZZZ_

I roll over with and annoyed groan and look at my phone, growling as I answer.

"What the fuck Sollux it's 2am!"

"KK a bunch of Mituna'th friendth are here I can't thleep," he whines. I do hear alot of voices in the background, but I was infinitely more annoyed that he had woken me up.

"It's a freaking Tuesday night," I groan, sitting up and clicking on the lamp. I rub at my eyes a few times, trying to wake up a bit.

"My dad ithn't home till morning and they won't lithten to me," He sighs, and I can hear him moving around. His voice sounded exhausted, and I can hear the exasperation in his tone. A pang of pity runs through my chest, and with my sleep-clouded mind I decide not to hang up on his ass and slide out of bed, standing.

"Do you want to crash here?" I ask, moving to my dresser to pull a shirt over my head, somehow keeping the phone by ear to hear him speak.

"pleathe? I'm theriouthly dying over here, and oh my god thomeone elthe jutht arrived," a door slams open somewhere and I hear loud shouting, but it wasn't angry or anything, more of celebration.

"I'll be waiting downstairs for you," is all I say, hanging up and pulling on the jeans that I had worn earlier today. I keep my feet bare so that my mom wouldn't hear me, which she was a really light sleeper, I'm risking alot for Sollux.

The apartment is almost creepily silent and I feel my ears twitch slightly when a noise reaches my ears. I don't know what it is, but it makes me move into the kitchen and crouch by the door. I see my mom stumble from the doorway and look around a bit, rubbing at her eyes tiredly before returning to her room. I take that moment to unlock the door and slip out, slowly letting the door click shut before running down the hall.

My bare feet thud against the floor but I didn't really care at the moment. I rub at my face to try and keep myself alert. My phone buzzes against my hip and I take a moment to slide it out to see he had texted me.

TA: ii ju2t letf ten miin at the le2at

Noting the spelling mistakes I come to a stop in front of the glass doors. It's really dark at 2am, it didn't really help that the moon was blocked by a rather large front of clouds. Backtracking, I sit down on the stairs with a small sigh, resting my head against the side-rail. I kinda realize how tired I am now that I wasn't running down the hallway. My eyes begin to fall shut and I try to keep them open, but it was a losing battle.

* * *

"KK, hey,"

I mumble under my breath and open my eyes the minimal amount to see Sollux looking down at me, wearing pajama pants and a loose t-shirt-two different shoes. He looks kinda guilty, but I didn't dwell on it, just growled a bit and returned to my leaning position.

"Come on KK," he sighs, leaning down to wrap an arm under my shoulders and another under my legs. I was tired enough that I barely protested to this action. "Fifth floor right?" He asks once he carries me up a few flights. I nod into his shoulder and he chuckles quietly before continuing to walk.

When he walks down the hallway leading to my apartment, I squirm out of his grasp and stumble to the door, forcing myself to stay awake enough to listen for my mom as I lead Sollux inside, gripping his wrist and motioning for him to stay quiet. When it's still silent by the time I get to my room, I allow myself to fall halfway asleep as I stumble to fall onto my bed, sighing into the blankets but easily falling asleep after a few minutes.

* * *

(Sollux POV)

I felt bad for waking up Karkat but I didn't really want to go to Gamzee's or Tavros's, and since Mituna's friends weren't listening to me, I just accepted the fact that I wouldn't get any sleep unless if I called Karkat. I was a bit shocked to find him asleep on the foot of the stairs; I decided to just save him the trouble of walking because he seemed pretty beat. Besides, it wasn't like he protested.

And he wasn't that heavy really, it was easy to carry him all the way to his apartment.

Looking at him asleep once more, I laugh a bit before pulling the blankets from under his legs to put them over him. He just sighs and turns away from me, facing the wall.

Left to make my own sleeping arrangements, I go to his closet and find a few blankets, which I use to make myself a nice space on the floor. A few movie cases fall down, and when I inspect them I kill the urge to laugh.

_Oh my God seriously KK? Chick-flicks?_

Putting those back, I decide to just use my shirt as a pillow since I didn't see any. It didn't take me long to follow Karkat's example and fall asleep.

* * *

(Karkat's POV again)

When I woke up to my alarm, I had almost forgot that Sollux crashed here, which is why I yelp in a rather high-pitched manner when I see him sprawled out on the floor, still completely passed out.

"Jesus Christ," I whisper to myself, then giggle at the way he's sleeping. The few blankets he had borrowed from me (shit...he had to make his own sleeping arrangements...oh well, he was the one that woke me up at 2 am) where everywhere but under and over him, giving me a good look at his shirtless self. I realized that his shirt was instead under his head.

Kneeling beside him I shake his shoulder, earning a mutter and small glare in response.

"Wake up fuckass, you're the one who crashed at my place," I huff, shoving his shoulder, getting greeted by a groan, but he sat up and rubbed at his head.

"Dammit, time?" He mutters, running his fingers through his hair as he looks around a bit. He seems a bit confused before seeming to recognize my room.

"Uh, only 6:30, my mom isn't up yet, you need to get your own clothes I'm assuming because to be frank I'm alot smaller that you are and I doubt my jeans would fit you," I'm babbling, dammit.

"Yeah, good athumption, I need to get homework and thtuff anyway," he sighs and stands, grabbing his shirt to pull over his head before grabbing his phone from the bedside table. "Thankth for letting me thleep here, I honethtly believe that Mituna'th thtill talking to hith friendth, th e idiot probably didn't even go to thleep" he grimaces as he slips his shoes over his feet, and I see that he had grabbed one black Converse and a white Vans apparently on the way over.

"Sorry dude, if you need to crash here again tonight you're welcome to, I might as well pay you back for the week I crashed at your place," I feel a lopsided smile on my face as he chuckles and nods.

"I'll probably be taking you up on that offer KK, thankth, thee you," he slips out, and I hear the small click of the front door opening and closing. Before I can move to begin getting dressed, my mom is leaning against the door with a small, sly smile on her lips.

"So, boyfriend?"

My face could've heated marshmallows, and I over my face with my hands, hearing my voice crack in my shouted reply.

"WE'RE NOT DATING!"

She giggles and walks into the room, patting my shoulder gently.

"Alright champ, whatever you say, warn me when you're bringing a guy over though, I don't want to walk in to wake you up and trip over him like I did," she doesn't give me time to reply as she almost sprints out, slamming the door behind her.

"FUCK!" I shout in embarrassed frustration, angrily brushing the hair out of my face. I try to accept the fact that everyone who didn't personally know us thought that me and Sollux are dating. I yank on a clean shirt and jeans, grabbing a jacket as an afterthought since it's been chilly outside lately.

Nepeta was already awake and had a mischievous grin on her face as her legs swing from the edge of the kitchen table. Her backpack is beside her on the table and I guess that my mom had gotten her ready and everything.

"Morning Karkitty~" She purrs, leaping off the table to hug around my waist. I can practically feel her smile against my torso.

"Uh...morning...why're you so happy?" I inquire, a bit nervous as how she will answer.

"Heard you had a nice night," her eyebrows waggle and I have to fight down the warmth in my cheeks.

"DAMMIT NEP!" she releases me as I cross my arms over my chest, earning a giggle from her as she grabs her backpack from the table.

"Heheh! Karkitty, take me to school please," her underlining tone I can hear 'so you can see him', making me scowl in annoyance.

While dropping her off, I see Mrs. Kanaya giving Rose a quick kiss before running into work and I feel the pieces in my mind click. I smile softly, the two women were a well-fitted match to be honest.

"bye Karkitty! Have a good day at school!" Nepeta shouts at me, and I get flustered before waving quickly turning away and walking toward my own school.

* * *

We were sitting in biology when one of the office workers comes in with two yellow slips. John thanks them and looks at the sheets with a confused expression.

"Uh, Sollux and Karkat, you guys are signing out," I glance over at Sollux with a bewildered expression and he does the same to me. We gather our stuff, getting some other confused looks from our classmates. Once we're out into the hallway, we sprint down to our lockers to grab our backpacks.

"Ok who would sign us out?" I question, placing the Algebra book in my bag and reaching for biology.

"I don't know, there'th nothing that we were going to do today right?" He'd already gathered all of his stuff and was waiting by my locker.

"No…oh wait…you said Mituna had all of his friends there right? Even the one they couldn't get into contact with?"

He seems to realize what I was implying and he scowled, slamming the heel of his hand against his forehead.

"I thwear if Mituna pulled uth out he better have a damn good reathon!" he growls, beginning to walk down to the office, using his long legs to his advantage and making me jog to keep up. We run into Gamzee and Tavros, who both give out surprised yelps as we trip over our own feet, falling into one big dogpile.

"Tavros!? Gamzee?!" I yelp, standing and rubbing my shoulder from where I had fallen.

Before they can reply Roxy sprints past us, then backtracks, jumping onto my shoulders in a sort of half hug.

"Kar! I thought I was like in trouble or somethin! But if you guys are here then it can't be just me!" She exclaims loudly, stepping away and watching the other three stand up and brush off their jeans. The five of us have to quiet down because a teacher passes by, giving us a weird look, then we start walking in a group toward the office.

Waiting there for us was Kankri and Cronus, both of them grinning like Cheshire cats. I became wary, and the office staff seemed hesitant to sign us out, but did so nonetheless.

"Before you start askin' questions, let us say it wvasn't completely our idea," Cronus smirks, interrupting me from my question asking position. I snap my mouth shut as Kankri continues.

"Yes, although we did agree to it so if anything we are also guilty by default, but we kind of figured you'd enjoy this more than sitting through school the rest of the day," Kankri smiles wryly, looking a bit out of character for his normally serious self.

"Ok, why the hell did you pull us out of school, on a Wednesday, at 10 am?" I ask once they both shut up.

"Wve don't have a real valid reason to be honest, but telling the office wvorkers that we were meeting up with 'family' didn't seem to wvin them over," Cronus answers.

"Oh my God, are you guyth theriouth!?" Sollux bursts, sounding annoyed, "Are you thaying you literally jutht pulled uth out to meet up with your friendth!"

"Yes and no, we already know that you know everyone Sollux, but we wanted to introduce everyone else, and hey, you guys got pulled out of school, be happy that we thought of you guys," Kankri responds, leading us out of the parking lot and bypassing all the cars. Apparently they had walked, which I was ok with since i twas nice out and we didn't have a shitload of homework today.

"I'm cool with this," Roxy proclaims with a large grin, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and another around Tavros's since she was walking in between the two of us.

"This sounds motherfuckin' fun, thanks for gettin' us out of that hellhole," Gamzee gives a lopsided smile and hugs Tavros to his side. I look over at Sollux, who was on the other side of me and laugh as I force him to lean down a bit so I can throw an arm over his shoulders.

"C'mon Sollux, anything's better than sitting in school," I say lightheartedly, trying to convince him to smile. HIs scowl vanishes and he chuckles lowly, nodding.

"Yeah I guess you're right."

* * *

A**/N:**

**SO this a decently length chapter, and this is the before setting for the beginnings of a plot, so :D :D :D I'm glad it's at a decent time as well!**

**So for those of you that wondered how my wonderful audition went**

**I bombed it. **

**it was horrorterrible**

**I am so mad at myself**

**So I've accepted the fact that I will probably get a bad seating in the orchestra that I tried out for, and I've (tried to) move on. **

**AHHHHHHHH :( **

**Anyway, typed this up while watching Supernatural, damn I just watched the episode "Heaven and Hell" and cod damn I love it so much Poor Anna...or maybe? I'm writing this ending note as the episode is halfway over. **

**[~happy birthday to me happy birthday to me happy birthday happy birthday happy birthday to me~] (I have nothing better to do than sit on the computer and scroll through tumblr while typing stories) **

**Oh hey I just kind of thought of something. I have no idea where I'm setting this. Like, I have no clue where they live. I kind of based this off of where I live because it's easier to picture the scenes and stuff but I just kinda didn't even think about anything else. Damn...any ideas people? **

**Oh yeah, next chapter I'm going to LOVE writing, I might even get it done today since I doubt I will be budging from my internet browsing position, I'm already on tumblr so yeah, I'm not moving for another few hours. **

**Hope you guys like it, thank you to those who've joined in on this escapade, and I thank you all for the wonderful reviews!**

**I will see you next chapter :) **

**~Disclaimer~ I own nothing but the plot~**


	24. Don't You Dare Forget The Sun

**I updated!**

**So...**

**I've been trying to decide on my favorite headcanon Karkat singing voice. I know that BroadwayKarkat is a prime example, but someone also recommended to me the Eridan from Nepeta/Eridan Bad Apple song on YouTube. **  
**The singer from Peirce the Veil kinda makes me think of him too... the song "Stay away from my friends" is awesome. There's this adorable voice crack near the end :3 **  
Does anyone else have a headcanon Karkat singing voice? I'd like to listen to them and see what they're like :)

**Abigail Johnson**

Are you a mind reader? Or a Predictor? Because let me tell you

There's fluff in this chapter  
Yay fluff!

And there are some future fluff chapters as well ;) ;) ;)

/  
**So guys **  
**I've got some fluff in store for you! You'll love the chapter, I promise! **  
**Well...ok I'm not a good fluff writer so I tried guys! Gold star for trying right?**  
**Right?**

* * *

Kankri and Cronus leads us to Sollux's house, where Cronus grabs Roxy Tavros and Gamzee and leads them to his shiny black car and Kankri took me and Sollux to his car. He shushes us before we have time to question and we decide to comply as he drives away, going slightly over the speed limit and watching behind us as Cronus pulls out as well, eventually tailing us.

"It'll be about a 20 minute drive, unless if we go a bit faster, then we'll get there in around ten," he explains, a small smile remaining on his face as he speeds up a bit. There is shockingly little traffic as he continues over the speed limit.

"Ok so where are we going?"

"Well everyone else is at this large park, where we're going now, it's rather like a campsite really, I think that we're going to set camp for the night, since we've begun setting up stuff. Orr that's what Latula texted me while we were picking you guys up, it's a rather good thing a majority of us drive trucks because we were able to carry alot of supplies," his phone pings and he tosses it over to me.

"Ok, Latula says that they're still unloading and could use some help," I read, already opening a reply message.

"Tell her five minutes."

Sollux speaks up from the backseat, "So are we jutht going to go and meet up with everyone?"

"Yep, and talk and stuff of course," Kankri answers, turning into a long paved road lined by tall trees. It opens into a wide park space with winding roads spread over the entirety of the grassy space. I can see a few people walking about, and the bright colours of tents and other vehicles peeking through the trees. Kankri drives through all of the open parts of the park and goes back further into the wooded section.

I spot Rufioh's truck and then a bunch of other vehicles come into view, then I recognize Latula and Mituna unloading the back of the trucks, while others are pulling stuff out of the back of car trunks.

"Uh, how many people are here exactly?" I ask nervously, tugging at the sleeve of my sweater. I saw Meulin and Kurloz walking from between two of the cars with armfuls of chips and food, with another girl in a red school uniform behind them.

"Hm, well, there's twelve of us, Dirk and them might head over later, then there's you guys, I'm thinking around 20-30 people to be honest."

I sit back in the seat, chewing at my lip as Kankri parks, allowing me and Sollux to jump out of the car, with Cronus and my three friends close behind them. Latula spots us and shouts something to the others as she drops the box she was holding to run over and hug me.

"Hi Karkles! Glad ta see ya made it!" She cackles, messing up my hair (not like it looked good anyway). She greets Sollux before grabbing Cronus and Kankri by the wrists and pulling them toward her truck, leaving us on our own.

We stand there watching for a few moments before Rufioh comes up behind us, requesting that we at least try to assist us in unloading everything. To which we just shrug at and follow him to where we are told to carry various items like food and tent boxes to the campsites they had rented out for a few days.

* * *

We end up meeting everyone while unloading and putting things together, I ended up working on a tent with the girl in the red uniform, which I learned was Damara, a foreign exchange student that had traveled back and forth between Europe and America, and had only recently returned here.

Then there was Aranea, who I ended up organizing food with. She spoke a majority of the time, and I found out that she was living with her girlfriend Meenah, who I didn't really get to talk with as much while getting everything together, and they were both teachers. Although according to Aranea, Meenah was a surfer and lifeguard, while she taught literature and history at a college.

Porrim was sitting near the back of the group, and I ended up chatting with her when I stopped to take a break. She is Kanaya's elder sister, and they worked together in a fashion shop uptown. She also worked part time as a nurse at local hospitals, most of the time at a hospital near our place. She had intricate tattoos that swirled up her arms and around her neck and collarbone, which I could see because she was wearing a low v-cut shirt that complemented her caramel coloured skin. She was quite proud of the designs, and her emerald green eyes sparkled when I asked about them.

Once everything had been set up, we all sort of gathered in the center of the campsite, and started talking to each other, Kankri's friends made sure to come over and introduce themselves to each of us, although they talked to Sollux about things that had happened before us. Which he often times smiled and joked about back to them.

I met Meenah personally, and I was almost shocked by her outgoing personality, compared to Aranea's quiet one. I assumed they were one of those mix-match couples. Her black hair was plaited in braids that hung past her lower back. She was wearing a loose black tank top with the zodiac symbol for Pisces on it, how fitting since she was a surfer. I could tell she was wearing a similar coloured swimsuit underneath it, which fuchsia was a nice colour for her darker skin tone.

She seemed eager to hold a conversation with me, which I didn't totally mind since we had an entire day to waste with doing nothing, so she told me about her life and I listened.

Throughout the early afternoon I could see Gamzee and Tavros also having conversations with various others; Roxy tagging along. Despite Sollux seeming like he didn't want to deal with them, he easily recounted occasions to which he interacted with the others and was having a fun time talking to Aranea (and when she wasn't talking to me) Meenah.  
When it was nearing 2 o'clock, two more trucks drove up, and I was slightly shell-shocked to see Dirk, Jane, and Jake climb out. Then John, Dave, Rose, and Jade hopped out of the next truck. They easily joined with the group; greeted with smiles and 'hellos'.

~~~

I'm standing off to the side when I notice someone with Rufioh, his back is turned to me but he seems awfully familiar. When Sollux meanders his way back over to me, I ask him.

"Hey, who's that talking to Rufioh?"

He looks at me for a few seconds with an almost wary expression before turning back to look at him, "That'th Horuth, I'm kinda thocked he actually wath able to come, hith both maketh him work almotht all the time."

That sounded so horribly familiar, and once 'Horuss' turns, I realize why, he was practiacally the spitting image of Equius, only older and not as intimidating. He was smiling at Rufioh and laughing at something. He didn't have any glasses on, displaying bright azure eyes covered partially by choppy bangs.

"Nice..." I mutter, feeling a bit bitter despite the fact that it wasn't actually him and that being bitter wouldn't help the situation in any way shape or form. I end up brushing away these thoughts once Jade pulled Meenah and Aranea over to talk to me. Even though Jade was my teacher, it didn't feel odd talking to her, in fact it felt more normal than most things.

* * *

When it was nearing four o' clock, Meenah called all of us to attention. I had noticed that she had disappeared for about half an hour, but I slowly began to realize why when I say the plastic handle to a water gun stuck into the waistband of her jeans.

"Alright y'all! So we're gonna have some fun here 'lright! It's nearin' 90 degrees right now, and I suggest, we do somefin' ta cool off, whaddya think?" She smirks and I can see the hand that's resting on her waist inching toward the water gun.

I glance around and notice large bins filled with water balloons hidden behind some trees, and lying on the food-packed picnic tables were the fluorescent plastic of water guns. Since I'm already near the back of everyone, I tense up and prepare myself to run as Meenah pulls the water gun and begins aiming it at us, jumping off the chair she was standing on to run toward us.

Shriek filled laughter is heard and I smile broadly as I run for the picnic tables, twisting my jacket off my shoulders and tossing it under the table while simultaneously grabbing the red water gun. I spin around and see that Kankri is right in front of me, barefoot and with his jeans rolled up and a mischievous smile on his normally serious face. I don't have any time to duck as he tosses a water balloon at my chest.

In retaliation I sprint at him with a grin, squirting him with water before running past him and dodging Aranea who attempts to hit me in the face but misses, but ultimately makes me run into Meenah. We both have a brief battle where we both end up running away from practically soaked.

For a few minutes it's chaos of all of us sprinting around trying to hit each other, before we somehow separate into different sides, having an extreme Mexican stand-off. I was facing Sollux, him armed with two water balloons, me with my water gun that was probably half empty. Beside him was Latula, who was staring down Mituna (who was on my Right side), the both of them having water balloons.

I was almost center of our side of the line; I was able to scan and see how well matched our unofficial teams were. We had Meenah, Rufioh, Rose, Mituna, Meulin, Porrim, Cronus, Tavros, Dave, and Dirk.

However, they had: Damara, Kankri, Latula, Aranea, Horuss, Kurloz, Sollux, Gamzee, Roxy, John, Jade, and Jake. They had us outnumbered by one, but it was difficult to tell who would come out victorious.

Meenah and Cronus were experts with the water guns they wielded, deathly with precision and accuracy. Dirk and Dave could easily run among everyone and slam a water balloon onto whoever with direct contact then run off before they would even know what had happened. Rose and Meulin were good with long distance balloon tossing, as was Porrim. Me and Tavros were just trying to survive while we run and shoot. Mituna and Rufioh were good with water guns, but I was still able to avoid them.

But they had Jade and Jake, the two of them were known marksmen/markswomen, easily able to hit targets with whatever they could use. (I already know, Jade had nailed me twice in the back with water balloons). Latula was so random in her attacks you couldn't tell very well who or what she was trying to hit. Damara and Kankri made a cruel team, both wielding a water gun in one hand and water balloons in another. Kurloz and Gamzee weren't afraid to toss a water balloon with their full strength (I already have a bruise on my hip from where Gamzee got me). I didn't see much of Aranea or Horuss, and Roxy was able to avoid all of us somehow, but Sollux was stronger than he looked and actually got in some decent hits when we were running around frantically.

From beside me I saw Meenah sneer at Aranea, who was standing across from her, and the other girl smirked in response. The matchups were pretty linear, from end to end we were all facing someone and unspoken through both of the teams was the fact that we were going to face off with that person.

A few various people from the park were standing in the road and sort of watching us, knowing not to get too near, a very wise choice. I saw Sollux begin to bring his arm up just slightly, and in response I brought my water gun up to eye level. It was another unspoken command, and suddenly we were all tensed as everyone aimed at each other.

Meenah gave a loud battle cry and took a few steps back as she squirted Aranea in the face, and with that we all erupted into chaos once more. Sollux ran at me before I could react and slammed the water balloon into my shoulder, making the hair on the side of my head stick up weird as the water slid down my back. I splutter before laughing and getting him in the face. He had taken off his glasses before hand so I saw the laughter in his eyes as he darted away to grab more ammo, and I found myself battling Jade, with Damara and Kankri performing a side attack against me.

We continue fighting until the last water balloon has hit the ground and the water guns have been abandoned on the ground. By then everyone is soaking, but none of us were really complaining. A few people fetch towels from the piles of supplies gathered and toss them around. I find myself grinning as I towel off my hair then giving it to sollux for him to somewhat dry his hair.

The sun has sunken lower in the sky as we all retreat to the camp-like area, where a fire is being started and food is being distributed. I sit down cross legged on the ground next to Sollux, on top of a blanket that someone had spread out. Others were sitting on chairs; the picnic tables that were inconveniently placed.

"See, this was better than sitting through school wasn't it?" I smile, trying to squeeze a bit of water out of my shirt (and failing) before giving him a sort of shoulder hug.

"Yeah, you're right, I thought it wath going to be worthe but thith ith pretty cool," he chuckles, shaking his head and making little water droplets land on me. I brush them off and push his shoulder.

"Well we'll have to deal with damp clothes but oh well, that was fun, but Jesus Christ you're stronger than you look."

"Not really, theriouthly, I have terrible aim too, I'm shocked I even hit you thothe few timeth," to prove that fact he grabs a twig and tosses it towards the fire, and fails miserably.

"Oh well, all of this was still fun,"

"Yeah."

* * *

The sky has begun to darken and sitting by the fire helped dry out all of our clothes a bit, the others are recounting stories from when they were in highschool when I notice that Sollux has slipped away almost silently. The two of us were on the outskirts again anyway so I got up quietly and followed him back to Latula's truck, where I watch him pull some blankets from the cab and spread them out on the tailgate before he sort of jumps up and leans back on his hands, gazing up at the purple night sky. After a few moments I walk quietly out and join him.

He points up at the sky and I follow his finger to see a star and I don't think he's going to say anything, so I jump when he does.

"Pollux Castor."

"Huh?"

"The star, it's Part of Pollux Castor, I think, it'th my namethake or thomething, my dad alwayth tellth me to look for it whenever I'm outthide, it might not even be the right thtar, but I think it ith."

I continue to stare at the sky, and I unconsciously lean toward Sollux, somehow placing my hand on top of his. I blush, especially when he doesn't make any sign of moving. I look at him out of the corner of my eye, and I smile at his concentrated, yet happy expression.

I can hear the laughter from the others, but it seems faint as I stare up at the stars, leaning against Sollux's shoulder. I feel him gently lean his head on top of mine, adjusting his arms to support the both of us.

"It's beautiful tonight," I murmur. Pollux Castor seems exceptionally bright against the blue-black backdrop of the night sky, and nearby I can see the Cancer constellation, I think of telling him about it, but I don't as he laces his fingers through mine.

I feel him hum in agreement; my face heats up more if that could even be possible. I feel a smile quirking the edge of my lips that widens when I nuzzle into his neck. The air is cool against my arms and I shiver slightly, which Sollux notices and wraps his free arm around me, keeping the other interlaced with my fingers.

We stare at the stars together until my vision starts to dim and blur, and a yawn makes me shudder and move to curl up on Sollux's side. I find him moving the two of us back in the truck bed, onto the blankets that he had spread out earlier. I smile at him in my half-sleep haze and hear him laugh quietly before he whispers.

"Good night Karkat."

* * *

D**id I do good? **

**Was the nice fluffy bit's ok?**

**Ok so I looked over my chapter plans (because I seriously had to plan everything out so I wouldn't leave anything out) and I realized that I have about...2 more filler chapters. **  
**Dammit I thought I had it right but I was wrong apparently**  
**But the next chapter is, then two more after that, THEN it's actually plot**  
**AUGH SORRY :( **  
**But hey! I typed up this nice chapter for you guys! **  
**Hopefully, HOPEFULLY I can get the next chapter out at a decent time**  
**Because I'm going to be partially working on some cosplays, I really want to get at least ONE finished because I literally have a bunch of unfinished cosplays and if I finished them they would probably be decent. **  
**I found myself working on Aradia horns instead of completing my homework **  
**but PSH who needs homework? **

Sadly I can't go to Aoi Uma Con this year, but oh well :/

**Danke to those of you that wished me a happy birthday! I actually had a decent one~ ^u^ **

**Oh! And (in the story) They will return to school before Friday, the day this is occurring is a Wednesday (if I don't mention it) **  
**Don't worry guys, I've got it all worked out! **

**(I only partially proof-read, I got kicked off the computer by my sister :P) **

**Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and I will see you next one!**

**~Disclaimer~ I own nothing but the plot~**


	25. YouLookDownOnMeSoCasuallyInEve rything

**OK I'M SO SORRY FOR THE LATE UPDATE GUYS**  
**Seriously, I've had a headache for the past weekortwo (still have one but I realize I need to update) It's a horrorterrible combination of allergies (It's Oktober guys!), weather (cold fronts everywhere...or something), the fact that I need a new prescription for my glasses, and probably that I'm stressed out of my mind about everything. School sucks ass guys. **  
**But Fall Break is soon! Two weeks of freedom! And I can't put off writing this to the weekend...**  
**Plus I've been procrastinating like a motherfucker**  
**and I decided it would be a better idea to work on literally any other chapter than this one for the story, so I've got...a majority of chapter 27 typed up...heheheheheheh DAMMIT **

**But uh, I'm going to try and get this chapter and the next one typed up real quick because gosh dammit I want to get to the plot as much as you guys probably want to read it! **

**Uuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhh**

**(school is like frying my brain, why the hell do teachers believe in giving us a shitload of assignments and tests a w**eek before fall break?)

* * *

[Mid-day with the dancestors]

"Wait wait, remember in Middle School when they used to have those stupid Frisbee games and you nailed the teacher right in the face? That was the highlight of the year!" Meenah laughs, pointing at Rufioh.

"Yeah yeah! I swear I didn't mean to! I mean, he only docked off a few points from my total grade anyway," the man chuckles in response.

"But he had the bruise for almost two weeks: he was so angry!"

"in our class, we stopped playing during the tournament , and there was only two Frisbees left on the ground and all of us stopped throwing them and just started talking in the middle of the gym, and the teachers couldn't do anything," Aranea smiles, leaning back onto Meenah's shoulder.

"At least we didn't have to do the swimming quarter, thanks to you Meenah," Meulin signs, letting Kurloz put her hair up in a ponytail.

"It almost cost me my eighth grade year, but hell it was well worth it," the women grins, showing off her pointy teeth.

"The look on his face was almost as priceless as the one on our Core plus teachers' when she walked into the classroom on April Fools day," Damara cuts in, tapping an unlit cigarette against the armrest of her chair.

"Nothing can ever beat that look I'm afraid," Cronus agrees,

"Didn't you guys cover her entire classroom and office full of posters or something?" Mituna asks, having not been there for the event. Latula nods, resting her arms over Mituna's shoulders.

"Yep, It was the best, and she kept them there the whole day, ,although we did get yelled at, I think it was well worth it," Latula answers.

"She was a pretty good teacher, but our language teacher was better, once she found a love letter on the ground and told us it was a disgusting thing to do, and exactly why-" Cronus gets cut off by Meenah.

"-Ah yeah! She told us about one of her friends who was crushing on a teacher when they were in school, or something..."

"Damn, I wish I could've gone on that European trip, but sadly I was too poor," Meenah sighs, brushing one of her braids over her shoulder.

"Meaning, you were too lazy to get a job," Aranea clarifies, earning a snorted laugh.

"Nah, it was more like I couldn't drive myself."

They fall silent for a few moments, looking over at the teens chatting near the back of their group, Roxy laughing about something, Sollux interrupting with a confused expression, Karkat trying to explain to him.

"I feel so old," Meenah grumbles, turning back around to the others, they just laugh quietly, feeling the same way. A familiar dark red truck drives up, and they smile as Dirk hops out with Jake, Dave and John right behind him. Out of another vehicle Rose and Jade jump out, Jane joining them as well.

"Wow, all of you guys made it, I'm shocked," Rufioh says plainly, before grinning and walking over to greet them. The others follow close behind, and for a brief moment Meenah looks over to see how confused the teens looked before tackle hugging the guys from behind.

After standing and brushing himself off, Dirk smirks at them, "We were only able to because school was let off early, something about there being no school tomorrow for testing or some bullshit, I didn';t really listen for details."

"Well, we were just reminiscing about middle school PE, have anything to add," Cronus grins, talking after they had returned to their now larger seated circle.

"Oh God, PE," Dave groans, "Some classes are fun to teach, others just," He does a small, exaggerated shudder before smirking again.

"I almost forgot that was what you taught to be honest," Jake laughs, punching the younger man in the shoulder.

"You teach the same school though!" John breaks in, looking at the English teacher with an expression of disbelief before Jake laughs.

"Terrible isn't it, I'm just so horribly forgetful aren't I?"

"I think that's a claim we can all make though," Latula interjects, tapping the side of her head and almost knocking off her red-rimmed glasses in the process. That earns a laugh from everyone as well.

* * *

"Has anyone seen Meenah or Cronus?" Aranea asks once it begins nearing four o'clock, realizing that the two of them had slipped away without anyone noticing. As if on cue, Meenah walked up behind Aranea and Hugs her close, cackling with a rather mischievous look in her eyes. Cronus does the same to Kankri, the others looking at the two swimmers in curiousity. Meenah had changed into her black shirt with slits down the sides, also ditching her shoes. Cronus had rolled up his jeans and was wearing his white shirt covered in purple paint splatters, also barefoot.

"Hey there sweet cheeks," Meenah cackles, without any warning shoving a water balloon onto the other womens back, earning a high pitch gasped. Almost simultaneously Kankri shouts in shocked confusion when Cronus copies the movements. Before they could do anything else though Meenah skips away, getting up onto the table and earning the attention of everyone standing there.

The elders of the groups there notice out of the corners of their eyes when Kankri takes off the black jacket he had been wearing to reveal the bright red t-shirt he had on underneath it, kicking his shoes off with a defiant smirk on his face. Aranea seems similarly peeved as she ties her hair up in a quick ponytail as Meenah continues talking.

Meenah watches as some of them look confused and others, like Karkat, begin looking around. She sets her and on her hip, reaching for the water gun she had tucked into the waistband of her shorts. Preparing for the reactions, she leaped off the table and began shooting the water gun at anyone in her way, and she could see Cronus doing the same as others scattered.

The Dancestors waged war amongst themselves, and soon enough they split off into sides, as war-parties are known to do. It was almost comical the way that unknowing onlookers began watching them.

The afternoon began to darken into evening as they all slowly began to dry off from their afternoon of water balloon and water gun fights. Once again they sat around in a group, now eating, and they began tlaking again about various happenings.

_

"Anyone theen my brother?" Mituna asks when the sky has darkened completely, stars appearing amidst the black backdrop.

"Seems as if Karkat has vanished as well," Kankri interjects, a smile on the verge of looking sly on his face.

"Well, we might as well look for 'em," Meenah says with a large grin, the most knowing of looks on her face. She stands, along with Kankri and Mituna, but the others just look at them with small grins.

"We'll just let you guys wander off, just don't get lost," Rufioh says, speaking for all of them. Roxy skips out from where she had been sitting at the edge of the group.

"Get pictures if it's anythin' good," She whispers with a small giggle before returning back to the conversation with Gamzee and Tavros. Meenah chuckles at this and nods in her direction before grabbing Mituna's and Kankri's wrists.

"I saw 'em go this way, I just didn't say anythin' cause you never know what might happen ya' know," She drags them off toward where Mtuna's truck was parked, and her assumption was right when the three of them see the two of their feet just barely on the tailgate of the truck, Sollux obvious enough by his somehow mis-matched shoes.

"Hah, told you," Meenah whispers under her breath victoriously, smirking as she gets out her phone and walks over to the two teens asleep in the truck bed.

"Meenah!" Kankri whisper-yells, only slightly warning her, but before the girl can begin to argue he gets out his phone and says in a hushed tone, "just don't wake them."

* * *

**TERRIBLE ENDING OH MY GOOOOOOOOD :( **  
**A short update I know, but I won't have any time this weekend (Saturday or Sunday) **  
**I have to go on an orchestra retreat that is basically mandatory from 8:45 am to 5pm, yeah no I would just LOVE to give away my ENTIRE SATURDAY so I can learn how to fucking play Suite in E Minor. (that's not the only piece but I dislike that one greatly) (please note the sarcasm) (but I do need to learn how to play that so...)**  
**then on Sunday I have regular orchestra rehearsal from 2:0pm-5:30pm, and since I leave at 1pm (which I might not even be up by then) I don't have time to get on the computer, and afterward I'm so exhausted I stop caring. **I got 13th chair of 2nd violins...which is the last chair in the orchestra...  
**MEH :( **  
**Is the week over yet :( **

**While I was typing this I kept thinking of different awesome vocab words I could add and I was probably making the strangest expression as I thought of one XP **

**and this chapter was basically a bit of what the Dancestors discussed at the get together, the next chapter will also be similar to the topic, but the chapter after that is where it begins to differ alright :| **

**OH HEY**

**So I was browsing tumblr (psh, what else would I be doing) and I found THIS : : / / tlsdlrhdwh . tu mblr po st/ 617 61995433 /spe ed-painting-spades-slick-in-my-headcanon**  
**Ok yeah if that doesn't show up or whatever, it's a humanstuck spades slick and he is pretty damn close to my personal headcanon for Silas **

**So even though it's short, I hope you like it, hopefully I can get the next chapter up soon. :/**

(I really need to get a beta or somethin because I have officially given up on proof-reading)

**~Disclaimer~ I own nothing but the plot~**


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